noun
- a person or thing that raids.
- a commando, ranger, or the like, specially trained to participate in military raids.
- a light, fast warship, aircraft, etc., used in such a raid.
- a person who seizes control of a company, as by secretly buying stock and gathering proxies.
- Informal. a person who works within an organization for the purpose of gathering evidence of wrongdoing.
1863, agent noun from raid (v.). A word from the American Civil War.