as in rebellion
refusal to obey
was fired for chronic insubordination
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Recent Examples of insubordination
The experience haunts Ortegas through the season, affecting her morale and pushing her even into outright insubordination.
—
Adam B. Vary, Variety, 5 Sep. 2025
So no one gets married, but Brian does get a bunch of lashes for his insubordination.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Roger Alford, who was fired in July for alleged insubordination, claims that political appointees under Bondi's direction overruled career staff and settled a major tech merger—Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks—in a manner that undermined the rule of law.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Aug. 2025
Bondi fired him for insubordination.
—Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
The deputy warden at the time stated the two actions were negligence of duty and insubordination.
—Maritza Dominguez, AZCentral.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Two top officials in the agency’s antitrust division — Roger Alford, principal deputy assistant attorney general, and Bill Rinner, deputy assistant attorney general and head of merger enforcement — were recently fired for insubordination.
—Julia Shapero, The Hill, 1 Aug. 2025
Adam B. Vary, Variety, 5 Sep. 2025
So no one gets married, but Brian does get a bunch of lashes for his insubordination.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Roger Alford, who was fired in July for alleged insubordination, claims that political appointees under Bondi's direction overruled career staff and settled a major tech merger—Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks—in a manner that undermined the rule of law.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Aug. 2025
Bondi fired him for insubordination.
—Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
The deputy warden at the time stated the two actions were negligence of duty and insubordination.
—Maritza Dominguez, AZCentral.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Two top officials in the agency’s antitrust division — Roger Alford, principal deputy assistant attorney general, and Bill Rinner, deputy assistant attorney general and head of merger enforcement — were recently fired for insubordination.
—Julia Shapero, The Hill, 1 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insubordination
Noun
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Kirk's assassination is the most high-profile example yet of what extremism researchers at the NCRI see as an increasingly dangerous normalization of political violence—often masked as satire, rebellion, or dark humor online.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
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One accommodation, the Rebel Suite, takes its design cues from the sea rebellions of Islay, full of nautical references, striking patterns, and bold green and blue hues.—
Nicole Hoey,
Robb Report,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Others including, longtime Sacramento resident Richard Alcala, viewed the festivities as an act of defiance against the current presidential administration.—
Mathew Miranda,
Sacbee.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
In Schorr’s photograph, the duo, played by Julia Garner and Cole Escola, is more ambiguous, more gender-flouting, projecting an air of affectionate defiance.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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This element of female rebelliousness is very important to me.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2019
Noun
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Many individuals remain out of necessity, not due to willful disobedience , but because of sudden changes in personal or political circumstances—including armed conflict, economic collapse, or family emergencies.—
Andy J. Semotiuk,
Forbes.com,
5 Aug. 2025
-
Thanks to that act of disobedience, the document is now preserved at Fort Ligonier.—
Aurora Martínez,
Smithsonian Magazine,
18 July 2025
Noun
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While this change reduces the explicit admission of willfulness, a narrative is still required.—
Virginia La Torre Jeker,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
This was an audience of almost 500 students and zero disrespect.—
Ashley Hume,
FOXNews.com,
17 Sep. 2025
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They've been taught, implicitly or explicitly, that disagreement equals disrespect.—
Sarah Hernholm,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Insubordination.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insubordination. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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