1
as in revolt
open fighting against authority (as one's own government)
the rebellion would have failed if not for the aid sent by other countries
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2
as in defiance
refusal to obey
the period of rebellion that teenagers typically go through
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rebellion
Consider Jefferson Davis, the first and only president of the Confederate States of America, commander in chief of a rebellion that killed hundreds of thousands of people.
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Jamelle Bouie, Mercury News, 8 Jan. 2026
Johnson opted to neither veto nor sign the final package, an implicit surrender after weeks of failing to stop the rebellion from his legislative counterparts.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026
That era belonged to a unique intersection of geography, television and cultural rebellion that can’t be recreated.
—Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026
All of their efforts at rebellion in the 19th century were swiftly and brutally suppressed.
—Laurent Dubois, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rebellion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rebellion
Noun
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Critiques from the American right, which lament the film’s timely depictions of a police state, immigrant internment camps and leftist revolt, read like ChatGPT essays programmed to write in the voice of Karen.—
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The film, which is Palestine’s entry for the Best International Feature category of the Oscars, tells the story of the Arab revolt against British colonial rule in Palestine in the 1930s.—
Noun
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Overnight, a show of defiance inside Venezuela from Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello Rondón, who posted a video to social media making his allegiances clear.—
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During her own allocution moments later, Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, likewise struck a note of defiance and introduced herself as the First Lady of Venezuela, her face appearing bruised and bandaged.—
Noun
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The host noted the date of the insurrection, following President Joe Biden's win over Trump in the 2020 election for president, early on.—
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In the days immediately following the insurrection, the country seemed almost unified in agreement that what had happened at the Capitol was violent and dark.—
Noun
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At times, Carol’s admirable rebelliousness seems to come at the cost of self-flagellating destruction, a badge of honor to be miserable.—
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The performance goes from fiery to ineffectual as DiCaprio’s character, Bob, loses his youthful rebelliousness in a haze of pot and resignation.—
Noun
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There was something in the beginning at least with that kind of uprising.—
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Many of the protesters in Iran’s 2026 uprising have rallied behind former Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who has lived in exile since 1979.—
Noun
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The orphan’s predicament is as much a matter of willfulness as of survival—inseparable, as in the works of Charles Dickens, from a dream of being somehow rescued by the idea of an adult world.—
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While this change reduces the explicit admission of willfulness, a narrative is still required.—
Noun
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Then who would be the Giants’ head coaching hire version of Wilson that would create a legit mutiny among its fan base?—
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But when her latest husband, discord spirit Raksh, provokes the council’s wrath, Amina must clean up his blunder, contend with Marjana’s demands for the truth…and figure out who on her crew is plotting a mutiny.—
Noun
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In the end, her disobedience—forged in tandem with and in opposition to her tribe—felt unmoored without a fellow-Mitford’s pigtail to pull.—
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However, the dictates of a person's conscience, religion, or personal philosophy cannot justify or excuse the disobedience of an otherwise lawful order.—
Cite this Entry
“Rebellion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rebellion. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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