as in insurgents
a person who rises up against authority
the rebel would not submit peacefully, even after he was captured
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in revolts
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
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Recent Examples of rebels
Merve Emre,
New Yorker,
28 June 2026
There was relative peace for 11 years, until a second civil war erupted in 1983, when leaders in Khartoum imposed sharia (Islamic) law and accelerated repression of the southern Christian rebels, which ultimately allowed a ruthless military officer, Omar al-Bashir, to come to power in 1989.
—
Janine Di Giovanni,
Vanity Fair,
25 June 2026
Finding an off-ramp is increasingly becoming necessary for GOP leadership as House rebels threaten to shut down the floor in the absence of a path forward.
—
David Sivak,
The Washington Examiner,
25 June 2026
That's partly because eastern Congo is also battling ongoing violence from rebels.
—
CBS News,
22 June 2026
That’s partly because eastern Congo is also battling ongoing violence from rebels.
—
Constant Same Bagalwa,
Chicago Tribune,
22 June 2026
The election is viewed as a test of Colombia’s fragile democracy a decade after its landmark peace deal with FARC rebels.
—
Regina Garcia Cano,
Los Angeles Times,
21 June 2026
In the jungles of southern Colombia, rebels turned in so many automatic rifles, pistols and bandoliers of bullets that one of the tables holding them collapsed in the mud.
—
John Otis,
NPR,
21 June 2026
Fighting between the Fano armed group and the federal government in Amhara, and the Oromo Liberation Army rebels in Oromia, has been the main cause of instability as the government seeks to disarm the groups.
—
ABC News,
21 June 2026
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Mar. 2026
Set against the backdrop of the 1998 São Paulo World Cup between Brazil and France, Amarela follows 14-year-old Erika Oguihara (Melissa Uehara), a Japanese Brazilian sports fanatic who rebels against her family’s more Japanese cultural traditions.
—
Destiny Jackson,
Deadline,
10 Jan. 2026
As the professor navigates retirement, the baby grows into a rambunctious child who rebels against the traditions of her fishing community.
—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
And the old person who rebels is ridiculous.
—
Merve Emre,
New Yorker,
28 June 2026
There was relative peace for 11 years, until a second civil war erupted in 1983, when leaders in Khartoum imposed sharia (Islamic) law and accelerated repression of the southern Christian rebels, which ultimately allowed a ruthless military officer, Omar al-Bashir, to come to power in 1989.
—
Janine Di Giovanni,
Vanity Fair,
25 June 2026
Finding an off-ramp is increasingly becoming necessary for GOP leadership as House rebels threaten to shut down the floor in the absence of a path forward.
—
David Sivak,
The Washington Examiner,
25 June 2026
That's partly because eastern Congo is also battling ongoing violence from rebels.
—
CBS News,
22 June 2026
That’s partly because eastern Congo is also battling ongoing violence from rebels.
—
Constant Same Bagalwa,
Chicago Tribune,
22 June 2026
The election is viewed as a test of Colombia’s fragile democracy a decade after its landmark peace deal with FARC rebels.
—
Regina Garcia Cano,
Los Angeles Times,
21 June 2026
In the jungles of southern Colombia, rebels turned in so many automatic rifles, pistols and bandoliers of bullets that one of the tables holding them collapsed in the mud.
—
John Otis,
NPR,
21 June 2026
Fighting between the Fano armed group and the federal government in Amhara, and the Oromo Liberation Army rebels in Oromia, has been the main cause of instability as the government seeks to disarm the groups.
—
ABC News,
21 June 2026
Verb
Masahiro Motoki — the Oscar-winning star of Departures — plays a lord who rebels against warlord Oda Nobunaga and barricades himself inside Arioka Castle, only to face a string of unsolved murders within its walls.
—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Mar. 2026
Set against the backdrop of the 1998 São Paulo World Cup between Brazil and France, Amarela follows 14-year-old Erika Oguihara (Melissa Uehara), a Japanese Brazilian sports fanatic who rebels against her family’s more Japanese cultural traditions.
—
Destiny Jackson,
Deadline,
10 Jan. 2026
As the professor navigates retirement, the baby grows into a rambunctious child who rebels against the traditions of her fishing community.
—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
6 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rebels
Noun
-
Sistan-Baluchistan, which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan, has long seen clashes between security forces, insurgents and drug smugglers.
-
Nine American soldiers died and 27 others were injured while fighting a battle against 200 Taliban insurgents in the village of Wanat in Afghanistan’s Waygal Valley.
Noun
-
Or was July 4, 1776, for the revolutionaries who founded the US, actually an undistinguished day?
-
Trade the tricorn hats, bonnets and homespun shirts for flip flops, sneakers and soccer jerseys, and the intrepid revolutionaries of 1776 would have looked a lot like the people of 2026.
Cite this Entry
“Rebels.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rebels. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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