n.
- One that acts or has the power or authority to act.
- One empowered to act for or represent another: an author's agent; an insurance agent.
- A means by which something is done or caused; instrument.
- A force or substance that causes a change: a chemical agent; an infectious agent.
- A representative or official of a government or administrative department of a government: an FBI agent.
- A spy.
- Linguistics. The noun or noun phrase that specifies the person through whom or the means by which an action is effected.
v., a·gent·ed, a·gent·ing, a·gents. v.tr.
To act as an agent or representative for: Who will agent your next book?
v.intr.
To act as an agent or representative.
[Middle English, from Latin agēns, agent-, present participle of agere, to do.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
