Indoctrinator

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person who teaches a particular set of beliefs, principles, or ideology to others, often with the aim of making them accept those ideas without question
2. Someone who instructs others in a specific doctrine, creed, or system of thought, typically seeking to ensure their acceptance and adoption
3. An individual who imparts a particular ideology or body of doctrine to others, working to establish their commitment to those teachings

Etymology: "Indoctrinator" is built on "indoctrinate" with the agent suffix "-or," so it names a person who indoctrinates. The base verb is itself formed from "in-," meaning "into," and "doctrine," the Latin-derived word for a body of teaching, so the whole word literally describes someone who instills a set of teachings into another person. The core idea is the picture of doctrine being poured or pressed into a mind, which gives the family its sense of deliberate, systematic instruction rather than casual teaching. The suffix "-or" appears in many older agent nouns, such as "editor" and "governor," which is why the ending feels familiar even when the root is less so.

Synonyms: propagandist, brainwasher