rat-fink

Noun

ratfink (plural ratfinks)

1. (Canada, US) An informer or spy; a traitor.
   • The authors have facetiously labeled the contemplated musical as 'Ratfink', after the name of its central character, James J. Ratfink. Its title is not meant in a derogatory sense.1961 May 9, Louis Calta, “New Show Listed by Jones, Schmidt”, in The New York Times, volume 110, number 37726, page 43

   Synonyms:

   rat, fink

2. (Canada, US, also, attributive) A dislikable or contemptible person.
   • Maxwell—or Maxie, as he was familiarly called by his once and former rat fink girlfriend—lived in a six-story walkup on a narrow street in Calm's Point, […]1999, Ed McBain [pseudonym; Evan Hunter], chapter 6, in The Last Dance: A Novel of the 87th Precinct (87th Precinct Mystery; 50), New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 150

   Synonyms:

   rat, fink

3. (Canada, US) A strikebreaker.

   Synonyms:

   rat, fink, scab

See all 4 meanings of ratfink