411 REFERENCE · Wiktionary
Drahtzieher
Reference material by Wiktionary contributors. This retains its source identity and is not 411 news reporting.
German
Etymology
From de Draht ziehen wire to pull -er wire puller.
Pronunciation
de De-Drahtzieher.ogg <<Germany>> (<<Berlin>>)
Noun
m in
de idiomatic string puller, puppet master, mastermind, svengali
de Dunkelmann Hintermann Strippenzieher
de 2010 w:Der Spiegel http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/index-2010-46.html 46/2010 118 In Wien wird der Prozess wegen des Mordes an einem Exil-Tschetschenen eröffnet. Spuren der Drahtzieher führen auch nach Deutschland. In Vienna, a court case is opened because of murder of an exile Chechen. Tracks of the string pullers also lead to Germany. https://web.archive.org/web/20260519113629/https://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/index-2010-46.html 19 May 2026
Usage notes
de Drahtzieher is used especially in the context of organised crime and terrorism, while de Strippenzieher is preferred in other cases, where the actions may be legal, or illegal in a vaguer fashion.
Declension
m
Further reading