rebel

American  

[reb-uhl, ri-bel] / ˈrɛb əl, rɪˈbɛl /

noun

1. a person who refuses allegiance to, resists, or rises in arms against the government or ruler of their country.

   Synonyms:

   insurgent, traitor, mutineer, insurrectionist

2. a person who resists any authority, control, or tradition.

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adjective

1. rebellious; defiant.

   Synonyms:

   mutinous, insurgent

2. of or relating to rebels.

verb (used without object)

rebel, rebelled, rebelling

1. to reject, resist, or rise in arms against one's government or ruler.

   Synonyms:

   mutiny, revolt

2. to resist or rise against some authority, control, or tradition.

3. to show or feel utter repugnance.

   His very soul rebelled at spanking the child.

rebel British  

verb

1. to resist or rise up against a government or other authority, esp by force of arms

2. to dissent from an accepted moral code or convention of behaviour, dress, etc

3. to show repugnance (towards)

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noun

1. 1. a person who rebels

   2. ( as modifier )

      a rebel soldier

      a rebel leader

2. a person who dissents from some accepted moral code or convention of behaviour, dress, etc

Usage

What does rebel mean? A rebel is a person who resists or defies rules or norms or rises up against the powers that be. In its more serious sense, a rebel is a revolutionary trying to overthrow a government. More generally, it means someone who breaks the rules, resists authority, or otherwise challenges the status quo by doing things in a nontraditional way, such as in fashion and other arts. As a noun, rebel is pronounced "REB-uhl."Rebel is also a verb meaning to resist or rise up against authority or tradition. As a verb, rebel is pronounced "ri-BELL."Example: Danielle refused to wear her uniform to school, fighting with the principle and urging the other girls to rebel against the policy as she did.

Other Word Forms

• nonrebel
  noun
• prorebel
  adjective
• rebeldom
  noun
• rebellike
  adjective
• semirebel
  noun

Etymology

Origin of rebel

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English adjective rebel(e), from Old French rebelle, from Latin rebellis “renewing a war,” equivalent to re- re- + bell(um) “war” + -is adjective suffix; Middle English verb rebelle(n), from Old French rebeller and Latin rebellāre; noun derivative of the adjective

Explanation

When you rebel against your parents by dyeing your hair green and staying out without calling, you are acting in a way that questions both their authority and their rules about what is right and acceptable. A rebel is someone who fights authority. The story of a rebel often finds its way into books and movies. In the 1950s film "Rebel without a Cause," a teenager rebels against his parents. In the "Star Wars" movies, the Jedi rebel against the Empire. A rebel, whether the cause they are fighting for is just or not, is always the underdog. One pronunciation hint, rebel as a noun has the stress on the first syllable and as a verb on the second.

Example Sentences

Realizing that they’re headed to the slaughterhouse, the animals rebel against the humans, save themselves, and reinhabit the farm, establishing their own system of checks and balances to ensure their survival.

From Salon • May 3, 2026

Mali has fought a long-running conflict against a broad array of rebel groups for more than a decade.

From BBC • Apr. 29, 2026

In the village of Tarlaguda, once a rebel hotbed, hopes are high that peace will bring change.

From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026

Most Angelenos know Frank Gehry as the rebel architect whose deconstructivist buildings reinvigorated L.A. amid its late-century identity crisis.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026

“The Navy captured a rebel ship off the coast of New Haven, filled with sheep and beeves.”

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

Related Words

• defy
• overthrow
• renounce
• resist
• revolt
• secede
• take up arms