aggressively active or combative in support of a cause.
militant reformers.
engaged in warfare; fighting.
a militant person.
a person engaged in warfare or combat.
aggressive or vigorous, esp in the support of a cause
a militant protest
warring; engaged in warfare
short for Militant Tendency
a member of Militant Tendency
See fanatic.
First recorded in 1400–1450; late Middle English, from Latin mīlitant- (stem of mīlitāns ), present participle of mīlitāre “to serve as a soldier”; see militate, -ant
A militant is someone who is engaged in a war or who acts aggressively for their cause. If you are militant in your beliefs, you do not question them any more than a soldier questions his orders. In the context of undeclared or guerrilla warfare, enemy fighters are often referred to not as soldiers but as militants, because they are not members of a formal army. As an adjective, militant often has a negative feel — people on one side of a debate will often try to cast those on the other side as militants.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Militant Irish republicans had been paying close attention to Carson’s tactics — which anticipated Mao Zedong’s maxim about the source of political power — and would eagerly emulate his example in the years ahead.
From Salon • Oct. 19, 2024
“Michael Voris has been asked to resign for breaching the Church Militant morality clause,” the organization said in its statement.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 21, 2023
The article on its website mentions America Needs Fatima, Catholic Vote and Church Militant as some of the fellow organizers for the event.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 15, 2023
Militant environmentalism is more of a hook than a subject about which the film has a point of view.
From New York Times • Apr. 6, 2023
Until later, Gary, Your Militant Working Boy V Dr. Talc lit a Benson & Hedges, looking out of the window of his office in the Social Studies Building.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
