secret agent

/ˈsikrɪt ˌeɪdʒənt/

/ˈsikrət ˈeɪdʒɛnt/

Other forms: secret agents

Definitions of secret agent

1. noun

   a person secretly employed in espionage for a government
   synonyms: intelligence agent, intelligence officer, operative

   types:

   agent-in-place

   an operative serving as a penetration into an intelligence target

   agent provocateur, provocateur

   a secret agent who incites suspected persons to commit illegal acts

   bridge agent

   an operative who acts as a courier or go-between from a case officer to a secret agent in a hostile area

   case officer

   an operative who also serves as an official staffer of an intelligence service

   codetalker, windtalker

   a secret agent who was one of the Navajos who devised and used a code based on their native language; the code was unbroken by the Japanese during World War II

   foot

   a member of a surveillance team who works on foot or rides as a passenger

   NOC

   an undercover agent who is given no official cover

   spy, undercover agent

   (military) a secret agent hired by a state to obtain information about its enemies or by a business to obtain industrial secrets from competitors

   walk-in

   an operative who initiates his own defection (usually to a hostile country) for political asylum

   action officer

   the case officer designated to perform an act during a clandestine operation (especially in a hostile area)

   counterspy, mole

   a spy who works against enemy espionage

   double agent

   a spy who works for two mutually antagonistic countries

   espionage agent

   someone employed to spy on another country or business competitor

   foreign agent

   a spy for a foreign country

   infiltrator

   someone who takes up a position surreptitiously for the purpose of espionage

   sleeper

   a spy or saboteur or terrorist planted in an enemy country who lives there as a law-abiding citizen until activated by a prearranged signal

   type of:

   agent

   a representative who acts on behalf of other persons or organizations