revolt

[ ri-vohlt ]

See synonyms for revolt on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

to break away from or rise against constituted authority, as by open rebellion; cast off allegiance or subjection to those in authority; rebel; mutiny: to revolt against the present government.
to turn away in mental rebellion, utter disgust, or abhorrence (usually followed by from): He revolts from eating meat.

to rebel in feeling (usually followed by against): to revolt against parental authority.
to feel horror or aversion (usually followed by at): to revolt at the sight of blood.

verb (used with object)

to affect with disgust or abhorrence: Such low behavior revolts me.

noun

the act of revolting; an insurrection or rebellion.
an expression or movement of spirited protest or dissent: a voter revolt at the polls.

Origin of revolt

1540–50; (v.) <Middle French revolter<Italian rivoltare to turn around <Vulgar Latin *revolvitāre, frequentative of Latin revolvere to roll back, unroll, revolve; (noun) <French révolte<Italian rivolta, derivative of rivoltare

Other words for revolt

6	uprising, disorder, putsch

See synonyms for revolt on Thesaurus.com

Other words from revolt

re·volt·er, noun
un·re·volt·ed, adjective

Words that may be confused with revolt

rebellion, revolt , revolution

Words Nearby revolt

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use revolt in a sentence

The ISI came to the CIA for assistance in fostering a revolt that had developed in the Afghan countryside against Communist rule.
CIA Agents Assess: How Real Is ‘Homeland’? | Chuck Cogan, John MacGaffin | December 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
A political leader told us parliament won't do anything unless people revolt.
Will the Swiss Quit Cooking their Kittens and Puppies? | Barbie Latza Nadeau | November 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Initially, Truth revolt printed that Dunham was 17 when this event occurred (she was 7).
Welcome to Generation Overshare: Lena Dunham, Taylor Swift, and the Politics of Self-Disclosure | Marlow Stern | November 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Fallin reversed course on that as well, but not before a mini-revolt grew among suburban parents.
The Democrats’ Great Plains Firewall: Can Joe Dorman Take the Oklahoma Statehouse? | David Freedlander | October 3, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
A problem far more pressing for the dynasty was the Taiping revolt, which ran from 1850 to 1864 and left tens of millions dead.
We're Still Fighting the Opium Wars | William O’Connor | August 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

The rapid spread of the revolt was not a whit less marvelous than its lack of method or cohesion.
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
Yet, so curiously constituted is the native mind, the blowing-up of the magazine was the final tocsin of revolt.
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
The news of Bruce's revolt and the death of Comyn roused Edward into full martial vigour.
King Robert the Bruce | A. F. Murison
General Pio del Pilar slept in the city every night, ready to give the rocket-signal for revolt.
The Philippine Islands | John Foreman
In vain he warned the King that this was not a revolt but a revolution; the counsels of Polignac were all powerful.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-Pattison

British Dictionary definitions for revolt

revolt

/ (rɪˈvəʊlt) /

noun

a rebellion or uprising against authority
in revolt in the process or state of rebelling

verb

(intr) to rise up in rebellion against authority
(usually passive) to feel or cause to feel revulsion, disgust, or abhorrence

Origin of revolt

C16: from French révolter to revolt, from Old Italian rivoltare to overturn, ultimately from Latin revolvere to roll back, revolve

Derived forms of revolt

revolter, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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