Commentator
/ˈkɑmənˌteɪtəɹ/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA person who makes a commentary, particularly
nounA person who makes a commentary, particularly, Synonym of historian or chronicler, a person who compiles an annotated history.
Sentence Examples
The commentator began yelling when the referee gave the defender a second yellow card.
Yanni is an Algerian economic commentator.
CEFR Practice Quiz
A veteran sports ____ described the winning goal in excited tones.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
A political ____ shared his analysis of the recent election results.
Word Origin & History
In form, from Middle English commentator, from Latin commentātor (“author, inventor, interpreter, jailer”), from commentātus + -or (“-er: forming agent nouns”), from commentāri (“to ponder, to study, to write upon”), from comminīscor (“to think over, to invent”) + -tārī (“to frequently be ~ed”). In meaning, influenced by comment and commentary. By surface analysis, comment + -ator.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"It would be well into the fourteenth century before the commentators came into their own."
— 2009, Randall Lesaffer, European Legal History: A Cultural and Political Perspective, →ISBN, page 257:
"Specifically, and unforgivably, she restarted the Heathrow Third Runway bandwagon, which had been stalled for more than a decade and even declared dead by most commentators."
— 2025 February 19, Christian Wolmar, “Reeves talks of 'growth' but pays lip service to the railway”, in RAIL, number 1029, page 35:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
A veteran sports ____ described the winning goal in excited tones.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
A political ____ shared his analysis of the recent election results.