"sleeper agent" meaning in English

See sleeper agent in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Forms: sleeper agents [plural]
Head templates: {{en-noun}} sleeper agent (plural sleeper agents)
  1. A spy who is placed in a target country or organization, not to undertake an immediate mission, but rather to act as a potential asset if activated. Translations (spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset): جَاسُوس نَائِم (jāsūs nāʔim) [masculine] (Arabic), 潛伏特工 /潜伏特工 (qiánfú tègōng) (Chinese Mandarin), nukkuva agentti (Finnish), agent dormant [masculine] (French), agent en sommeil [masculine] (French), agente dormiente [feminine, masculine] (Italian), śpioch (Polish), uśpiony agent [masculine] (Polish), agente adormecido [masculine] (Portuguese), agente dormente [masculine] (Portuguese), спя́щий аге́нт (spjáščij agént) [masculine] (Russian), agente durmiente [feminine, masculine] (Spanish), agente dormidor [masculine] (Spanish), sovande agent [common-gender] (Swedish)

Inflected forms

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "sleeper agents",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "sleeper agent (plural sleeper agents)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
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  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
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          "kind": "other",
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        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
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          "kind": "other",
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        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Italian translations",
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        },
        {
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          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
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        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Portuguese translations",
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        {
          "kind": "other",
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        {
          "kind": "other",
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          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Espionage",
          "orig": "en:Espionage",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "People",
          "orig": "en:People",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A spy who is placed in a target country or organization, not to undertake an immediate mission, but rather to act as a potential asset if activated."
      ],
      "id": "en-sleeper_agent-en-noun-j8dqx1uK",
      "links": [
        [
          "spy",
          "spy"
        ],
        [
          "organization",
          "organization"
        ],
        [
          "undertake",
          "undertake"
        ],
        [
          "asset",
          "asset"
        ],
        [
          "activated",
          "activated"
        ]
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "ar",
          "lang": "Arabic",
          "lang_code": "ar",
          "roman": "jāsūs nāʔim",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "جَاسُوس نَائِم"
        },
        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "lang_code": "cmn",
          "roman": "qiánfú tègōng",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "word": "潛伏特工 /潜伏特工"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "lang_code": "fi",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "word": "nukkuva agentti"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "lang_code": "fr",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agent dormant"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "lang_code": "fr",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agent en sommeil"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "lang_code": "it",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "feminine",
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agente dormiente"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "lang_code": "pl",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "word": "śpioch"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "lang_code": "pl",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "uśpiony agent"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "lang_code": "pt",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agente adormecido"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "lang_code": "pt",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agente dormente"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "lang_code": "ru",
          "roman": "spjáščij agént",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "спя́щий аге́нт"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "feminine",
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agente durmiente"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "agente dormidor"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "lang_code": "sv",
          "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "sovande agent"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "sleeper agent"
}
{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "sleeper agents",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "sleeper agent (plural sleeper agents)",
      "name": "en-noun"
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  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
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        "English countable nouns",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
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        "Terms with Finnish translations",
        "Terms with French translations",
        "Terms with Italian translations",
        "Terms with Mandarin translations",
        "Terms with Polish translations",
        "Terms with Portuguese translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "Terms with Spanish translations",
        "Terms with Swedish translations",
        "en:Espionage",
        "en:People"
      ],
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        "A spy who is placed in a target country or organization, not to undertake an immediate mission, but rather to act as a potential asset if activated."
      ],
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          "spy",
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        ],
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          "asset",
          "asset"
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        [
          "activated",
          "activated"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "ar",
      "lang": "Arabic",
      "lang_code": "ar",
      "roman": "jāsūs nāʔim",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "جَاسُوس نَائِم"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "lang_code": "cmn",
      "roman": "qiánfú tègōng",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "word": "潛伏特工 /潜伏特工"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "lang_code": "fi",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "word": "nukkuva agentti"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "lang_code": "fr",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agent dormant"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "lang_code": "fr",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agent en sommeil"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "lang_code": "it",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agente dormiente"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "lang_code": "pl",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "word": "śpioch"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "lang_code": "pl",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "uśpiony agent"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "lang_code": "pt",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agente adormecido"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "lang_code": "pt",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agente dormente"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "lang_code": "ru",
      "roman": "spjáščij agént",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "спя́щий аге́нт"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agente durmiente"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "agente dormidor"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "lang_code": "sv",
      "sense": "spy placed in a target country or organization to act as a potential asset",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "sovande agent"
    }
  ],
  "word": "sleeper agent"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-07-16 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-07-06 using wiktextract (e62056b and e7887d5). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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