as in rebellious
given to resisting authority or another's control
today's rebel chefs feel free to ignore the dictates of classic French cuisine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in insurgent
a person who rises up against authority
the rebel would not submit peacefully, even after he was captured
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to revolt
to rise up against established authority
the colonists rebelled in the wake of an onslaught of abuses
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of rebel
Literary Hub, 17 July 2025
On Friday, a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital a staggering 14.2 million have been displaced since the government and the rebel Rapid Support Forces started the current civil war in April 2023.
—Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025
Yinka Adegoke, semafor.com, 18 July 2025
The United States, under the Biden administration, didn’t appear to have much of an answer to Iran’s persistent pursuit of nuclear status, or to the growing regional threat posed by its other proxies, like Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
—Ilan Berman, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2025
Dozens of Labour politicians are expected to rebel against a government welfare bill when lawmakers vote on it this evening, according to the BBC.
—Chloe Taylor,holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 1 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rebel
Adjective
In addition to these celebrity cases, hundreds more anonymous American military men spent the war languishing in notoriously bad British prisons, starved of the basic niceties international standards dictated for prisoners of war—a status they were denied as rebel combatants.
—Literary Hub, 17 July 2025
On Friday, a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital a staggering 14.2 million have been displaced since the government and the rebel Rapid Support Forces started the current civil war in April 2023.
—Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025
Noun
The partnerships come amid ongoing conflict in the country’s east led by rebels backed by its neighbor Rwanda.
—Yinka Adegoke, semafor.com, 18 July 2025
The United States, under the Biden administration, didn’t appear to have much of an answer to Iran’s persistent pursuit of nuclear status, or to the growing regional threat posed by its other proxies, like Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
—Ilan Berman, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
Verb
Were Susan and her brothers eager to rebel and create less commercial, more challenging music than their record company would allow?
—George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2025
Dozens of Labour politicians are expected to rebel against a government welfare bill when lawmakers vote on it this evening, according to the BBC.
—Chloe Taylor,holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 1 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rebel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rebel
Adjective
-
The chancellor is caught between febrile bond markets worried about government debt levels across advanced economies and rebellious Labour lawmakers who recently forced the government to pull back on reforms to welfare spending.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
22 July 2025
-
Once Audrey Hepburn was seen in a pair of the prototypical capri pants, everyone wanted to own them, and de Lennart’s hero product was later donned by the likes of Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor: appreciated for its originally rebellious intentions and modern-woman appeal.—
Stacia Datskovska,
Footwear News,
21 July 2025
Noun
-
Prosecutors allege that Carvajal played a key role in coordinating large-scale cocaine shipments to the United States, using his official position to protect narcotics operations and facilitate deals with foreign insurgent groups, most notably Colombia’s FARC.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
25 June 2025
-
Inside is the man who arrived at Balenciaga as a 34-year old insurgent from Vetements in 2015, and is now moving on, aged 44, as one of the undisputed creative director titans of luxury fashion, charged to revive the flagging fortunes of Gucci.—
Sarah Mower,
Vogue,
24 June 2025
Verb
-
Turkish savers revolted against the lira, with nearly 70% of bank deposits denominated in or indexed to foreign currencies by the peak in 2022-2023.—
Matthew C. Klein,
semafor.com,
17 July 2025
-
Right-wing influencers Megyn Kelly and Ben Shapiro locked horns over the Jeffrey Epstein investigation on Monday, as MAGA continues revolting over the Trump administration's handling of the case.—
Sonam Sheth,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 July 2025
Adjective
-
On Monday, asked about the poll proposal at an unrelated event, Adams was defiant.—
Oren Oppenheim,
ABC News,
14 July 2025
-
Trump's defiant response in Butler, Penn., may have fueled his big Election Day gains among male voters.—
Susan Page,
USA Today,
11 July 2025
Noun
-
Actors Juan Quispe and Edith Ramos topline a story that intertwines two periods, that following the 18th century revolutionary Ángel Pumacahua, defeated in battle, who flees to his village and, upon his arrival, finds himself in the Peruvian Andes of the 21st century.—
Emiliano De Pablos,
Variety,
4 July 2025
-
Curtis Everett in Snowpiercer (2014) Released just two years after the first Avengers, Bong Joon Ho's apocalyptic thriller Snowpiercer allowed Evans to show off his grittier side, playing a reluctant revolutionary named Curtis.—
Devan Coggan,
EW.com,
13 June 2025
Verb
-
In 1913, Swiss Guards mutinied for a week in response but eventually received military training as Repond wanted, Alvarez wrote in The Pope's Soldiers: A Military History of the Modern Vatican.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
7 May 2025
-
In June 2023, the group mutinied and marched on Moscow before then leader Yevgeny Prigozhin negotiated a deal with the Kremlin.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
Newsweek,
13 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Rebel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rebel. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share