Search

Zoology. any organism that exists by upon other organisms.
a predatory person.
Contemporary Examples

He believes that consuming the spirit on a regular basis gives him the strength of a tiger and the senses of a predator.
China Is Brewing Wine From Tiger Bones Brendon Hong July 21, 2014

Shiite militiamen allied with Iran were able to hack into U.S. predator drones being flown over Iraq in recent years.
Iran Hits the Jackpot With CIA Drone Crash Babak Dehghanpisheh December 9, 2011

Shortly before Sept. 11, then–CIA director George Tenet said it would be “a terrible mistake” to use a weapon like the predator.
Buy Your Own Drone! Now Only $300 Online Clive Stafford-Smith April 27, 2012

And in those conflicts, the predator would be all-but-useless.
The Killer Drone Goes Stealthy—Just in Time for a New Cold War Zach Rosenberg April 15, 2014

He circled LWT like a predator and finally was able to buy a controlling interest.
Rupert Murdoch’s BSkyB Bid Is His Latest Move for Control Clive Irving January 29, 2011

Historical Examples

In general, the predator is bulkier than his prey, since he overcomes him and devours him.
Introduction to the Science of Sociology Robert E. Park

This was a natural infestation of a laboratory culture by a predator.
The Biotic Associations of Cockroaches Louis M. Roth

Pursuit by a predator, random movement, or other cause may be responsible for shift from one edge to another.
Home Range and Movements of the Eastern Cottontail in Kansas Donald W. Janes

And yet there was nothing about Jason Perfidion—nothing physical, that is—that suggested the predator.
A Knyght Ther Was Robert F. Young

These services are aimed at re-establishing economic equilibrium in the host (predator) economies.
After the Rain Sam Vaknin

noun
any carnivorous animal
a predatory person or thing
n.

1862, from Latin praedator “plunderer,” from praedari “to rob” (see predation). Originally Predatores (Swainson, 1840) used of insects that ate other insects.
predator
(prěd’ə-tər)
An animal that lives by capturing and eating other animals.