Toppler

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. One who or that which causes something to fall or overturn; a person who overthrows an established authority or government; an object or device prone to tipping or collapsing under pressure
2. An agent responsible for bringing down or upsetting structures or positions of power; an individual engaged in overthrowing regimes or leadership; any item liable to lose balance and fall over
3. A being or entity that makes something lose stability and fall down; a person who ousts rulers or leaders; a thing likely to fall because of instability or imbalance

Etymology: "Toppler" is a plain formation: the verb "topple" with the agent suffix "-er" attached, so it names something or someone that topples. The verb "topple" itself is a frequentative-style form of "top," the word for the highest point of something, so a topple is the act of tipping over from that top. Put together, a toppler is the thing or person that brings another down from its high position. The noun is a straightforward example of how English builds agent nouns from verbs, the same pattern as "baker" or "runner." Its meaning as an agent of downfall follows directly from the verb's sense of overturning something that stands high.

Synonyms: overturner, collapser, falling object, tumbler

Antonyms: stabilizer, supporter, upright object