Rooter

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Someone who cheers or supports a sports team or cause ; a person or device that pulls up roots or removes something firmly fixed in place
2. An individual who vigorously encourages a group or event ; an agent or instrument used to extract roots from the ground or other material
3. A person who expresses enthusiastic backing for a team or movement ; a tool or person involved in removing roots or uprooting plants

Etymology: The agent suffix does most of the work here. "-er" descends from Latin "-arius", which English picked up through Old French "-ier" and which had been turning verbs into nouns for people who perform an action since Roman times. The Old English form was "-ere", so "rooter" is a plain, unglamorous compound of "root" and this long-standing suffix. The verb underneath is "root", meaning to cheer for someone or something, and it is the sense of sporting encouragement that gives the noun its meaning. A "rooter" is therefore simply someone who roots, a person who cheers loudly on the side of a team. The word has no known rival origin and no story of invention behind it; its history is that of the verb it was built from.

Synonyms: fan, supporter, cheerleader, enthusiast, advocate

Antonyms: opponent, critic, adversary, detractor, enemy