noun
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a person who reports, esp one employed to gather news for a newspaper, news agency, or broadcasting organization
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a person, esp a barrister, authorized to write official accounts of judicial proceedings
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a person authorized to report the proceedings of a legislature
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social welfare an official who arranges and conducts children's panel hearings and who may investigate cases and decide on the action to be taken
Etymology
Origin of reporter
1350–1400; Middle English reportour < Anglo-French ( Old French reporteur ). See report, -er 1
Explanation
A reporter is a journalist who goes out and gets the scoop on the news and informs the rest of us. If there’s a news conference or a train crash, a reporter is probably there getting the lowdown. If you want to be a reporter one day, you might study journalism in college, learning to write accurate and informative stories. Many reporters research, write, and edit articles about politics or current events, but you could also be a pop culture reporter or a tech reporter. The newspaper sense of reporter dates from 1798 — earlier it simply meant "one who gives an account."
Vocabulary lists containing reporter
Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -er, -or
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Journalism Jargon
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Dion Nissenbaum is Votebeat’s senior national reporter and is based in Houston.
From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026
A reporter then asked if, in an extreme case, the war would not just drive up prices but also lead to shortages of jet fuel.
From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026
At the same time Clark was damaging her image, her Fever bosses came under fire for trying to protect that image by revoking the credential of veteran Fever and Pacers beat reporter Scott Agness.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 7, 2026
On a lighter note, when asked by a reporter on the flight to Spain whether he preferred Barcelona or Real Madrid, Leo replied with typical diplomatic tact that the Pope supported all teams.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026
The police couldn’t let that kind of thing slide if a reporter were to wonder who was at fault and maybe call for someone’s punishment.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
