double agent
Spy serving two
A double agent is a spy who pretends to work for one country or organization while actually serving another.
The term emphasizes the deception involved: the agent's apparent employers believe they have a loyal operative, unaware that information flows to the enemy.
The novel's protagonist was revealed to be a double agent in the final chapter.
The concept extends loosely to anyone playing both sides of a conflict or secretly betraying an allegiance.
Subterranean insectivore
- handlerOne who manages something
- assetItem of value owned
- operativeCovert field agent
- sleeperOne at rest
infiltrator · counterintelligence · intelligence · informant · tradecraft · cover story · dead drop · surveillance
Deliberate misleading behavior
- betrayalBreaking of trust
- treacheryDeliberate violation of trust
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- subterfugeDeliberate deception to conceal
disinformation · misdirection · false flag · turned · compromised · feeding · playing both sides · trust
Loyalty owed to authority
- defectionAbandoning one's loyalty
- treasonBetraying one's nation
- patriotismDevotion to one's homeland
- ideologyStructured belief framework
handler · paymaster · conflicted · torn · recruitment · motivation · blackmail · coercion
Fiction featuring secret agents
- James BondBritish intelligence agent
- cold warHostility without open fighting
- thrillerSuspense-driven narrative genre
- intrigueSecret plotting or fascination
mole
Subterranean insectivore
sleeper · infiltrator · counterintelligence · intelligence · informant · tradecraft · cover story · dead drop · surveillance · network
duplicity
Deliberate misleading behavior
- betrayalBreaking of trust
- treacheryDeliberate violation of trust
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
subterfuge · disinformation · misdirection · false flag · turned · compromised · feeding · playing both sides · trust · exploitation
allegiance
Loyalty owed to authority
- defectionAbandoning one's loyalty
- treasonBetraying one's nation
- patriotismDevotion to one's homeland
ideology · handler · paymaster · conflicted · torn · recruitment · motivation · blackmail · coercion · money
spy thriller
Fiction featuring secret agents
- James BondBritish intelligence agent
- cold warHostility without open fighting
- thrillerSuspense-driven narrative genre
intrigue · plot twist · unmasking · suspense · cloak-and-dagger
- Agentsspy, operative, CIA officer, intelligence officer, case officer
- spiesJames Bond, spy, Jason Bourne, Ethan Hunt, Austin Powers
- espionagespy, spies, spying, moles, tradecraft
- Spy Fictionspy, MI6, CIA, KGB, undercover
- betrayalbackstab, betray, betrayal, traitor, backstabber
- character tropesantihero, hero, damsel in distress, mentor, femme fatale
double agenttrue believer
Completely committed adherent
faithful servant · patriot · loyalist · company man · reliable source
double, agent, doubled, agents, doubling, doubles, doubler, double agents