A). common informer, voluntary denouncer (there being no Public Prosecutor), e.g. of contraband imports, καὶ ς. εἴ τις ἦν ὠνείδισας; did you dare to reproach a ς.? Ar. Ach. 559 , cf. 725 , 825 ; of unlawful possession, Id. Pl. 873 , 879 , 885 ; of disaffection to Athens, Isoc. 15.313 (cf. 316 - 18 ); κλητήρ εἰμι νησιωτικὸς καὶ ς. Ar. Av. 1423 ; the ς. became notorious as pettifoggers, Lycurg. 31 (cf. Ar. Ach. 920 - 4 ), D. 20.62 , vexatious prosecutors of innocent persons esp. if rich, Lys. 25.3 , D. 57.34 , and blackmailers, Antipho 5.78 , 80 , Lys. 7.20 , And. 1.105 , D. 21.103 , 58.27 , Aeschin. 2.5 , 3.256 , Hyp. Lyc. 2 , Theopomp. Hist. 107 , 267 , Luc. Tim. 36 ; having thus abused their legal powers, they were treated as criminals,[ οἱ τριάκοντα] τοὺς ς .. . ἀνῄρουν Arist. Ath. 35.3 , cf. X. HG 2.3.38 , Isoc. 15.313 , 18.3 ; συκοφαντῶν προβολαί Arist. Ath. 43.5 , cf. Aeschin. 2.145 ; they were numerous in democracies, Thphr. Char. 26.5 ; χρῆν .. ἐγγίγνεσθαι .. πάσῃ δημοκρατίᾳ ς. Plu. Tim. 37 ; δημαγωγῶν πλῆθος καὶ ς. at Syracuse, D.S. 11.87 ; rarer in oligarchies, e.g. Boeotia, Ar. Ach. 904 ; βασιλεὺς ἐνδεὴς προσόδων μέγας ς. a great extortioner, LXX Pr. 28.16 .

2). in New Com., professional swindler or confidential agent, πράττει δ’ ὁ κόλαξ ἄριστα πάντων, δεύτερα ὁ ς. Men. 223.17 , cf. Georg. Fr. 1 , Philippid. 29 : so in Lat. sycophanta, Plaut. Poen. 1032 , Trin. 815 , Ter. Andr. 815 ; humbug, Favorin. ap. Gell. 14.1.32 .

3). = Lat. delator, ὁ πικρὸς ς. Ἰσίδωρος Ph. 2.597 , cf. OGI 669.41 (Egypt, i A.D.), Cod.Just. 1.4.34.17 , al. (From σῦκον φαίνειν, orig. used of denouncers of the attempted export of figs from Athens, acc. to Ister 35 , Plu. Sol. 24 , 2.523b ; orig. of citizens entrusted with the collection of figs as part of the public revenues of Athens and the denouncing of tax-evaders, acc. to Philomnest. 1 ; of denouncers of figs which had been stolen from the sacred fig-trees during a famine and had become cheap, the famine having passed, Sch. Ar. Pl. 31 , cf. Fest. p.393 L.; these and modern explanations are mere guesses; the word first in Ar. but implied by συκοπέδιλος.)