What does Internet troll mean?
A person who deliberately posts provocative or disruptive material online to upset others, attract attention, or trigger reactions.
Also written: troll · online troll · trolling · trolled
The meaning
An internet troll is someone who intentionally disrupts an online conversation by posting inflammatory, irrelevant, offensive, or otherwise provocative content. To troll means to carry out that behavior, usually to annoy people, start arguments, or draw a strong response.
What’s the tone?
Usually negative and dismissive. Calling someone a troll questions their good faith, so it is better to describe the behavior when intent is uncertain.
When and how to use it
Use troll when provocation or disruption appears intentional. It can describe a person, account, comment, or act, but disagreement, criticism, sarcasm, or a mistaken opinion is not automatically trolling.
In a conversation
Original examples to illustrate the expression.
Don’t let that troll derail the thread with insults that have nothing to do with the question.
I thought the comment was serious at first, but they were only trolling for an angry reaction.
Easy to misread
A troll tries to provoke or disrupt; a reply guy is defined more by repetitive unwanted replies, while rage bait describes content designed to manufacture anger. A troll account may also be a sock puppet or burner, but anonymity is not required.
A little context
Troll has several older meanings, including a folklore creature and a fishing verb, while its online sense refers to deliberate provocation and disruption. Dictionary and research sources agree on intentional antagonism as the core idea, although research also notes that trolling behavior can be situational rather than a permanent personality type.
Sources & further reading
These sources support the explanation. The dialogue above is original.
- Troll Definition & MeaningMerriam-Webster · Checked Oct 22, 2026
Defines the online noun and verb around intentional antagonism through inflammatory, irrelevant, offensive, or disruptive content and includes public usage examples.
- Troll Definition & MeaningDictionary.com · Checked Oct 22, 2026
Defines trolling as deliberately posting inflammatory or polarizing messages to upset others or provoke a response, with multiple public examples from independent publications.
- Anyone Can Become a Troll: Causes of Trolling Behavior in Online DiscussionsACM / Stanford University researchers · Checked Oct 22, 2026
Peer-reviewed research treats trolling as antisocial behavior outside community norms and shows that ordinary users can engage in it under contextual pressures, supporting a behavior-focused explanation.
Prepared with AI assistance and automated quality checks. Meanings can vary by context. Read our editorial policy.