投资者 (tóu zī zhě) literally means 'one who invests' — 投 (tóu) means 'to throw, to direct (effort/capital)', 资 (zī) means 'resources, capital, funds', and 者 (zhě) is a nominal suffix meaning 'person who does something'. Together, the term refers to an individual or entity that allocates money or assets into ventures — such as stocks, real estate, startups, or mutual funds — with the expectation of financial return. It is a formal, neutral term commonly used in business, finance, and news contexts.

This word appears frequently in reports, contracts, regulatory documents, and discussions about economic policy or market trends. Unlike colloquial alternatives like '金主' (jīn zhǔ, 'money boss', informal/slang), 投资者 carries no connotation of influence beyond financial participation and implies a degree of responsibility and risk awareness. It’s often paired with modifiers like '潜在' (qián zài, 'potential'), '机构' (jī gòu, 'institutional'), or '个人' (gè rén, 'individual') to specify investor type.