guerrilla

American  

[guh-ril-uh] / gəˈrɪl ə /

Or guerilla

noun

1. a member of a band of irregular soldiers that uses guerrilla warfare, harassing the enemy by surprise raids, sabotaging communication and supply lines, etc.

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adjective

1. pertaining to such fighters or their technique of warfare: guerrilla tactics.

   guerrilla strongholds;

   guerrilla tactics.

2. of or relating to an unauthorized, edgy, or disruptive version of an activity: guerilla gardening to beautify an abandoned lot.

   guerrilla filmmaking on a busy sidewalk;

   guerilla gardening to beautify an abandoned lot.

guerrilla British  

/ ɡəˈrɪlə /

noun

1. 1. a member of an irregular usually politically motivated armed force that combats stronger regular forces, such as the army or police

   2. ( as modifier )

      guerrilla warfare

2. a form of vegetative spread in which the advance is from several individual rhizomes or stolons growing rapidly away from the centre, as in some clovers Compare phalanx

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Other Word Forms

• antiguerrilla noun
• counterguerrilla adjective
• guerrillaism noun

Etymology

Origin of guerrilla

First recorded in 1800–10; from Spanish, diminutive of guerra “war” (of Germanic origin) + -illa diminutive suffix; originally in reference to the Spanish resistance against Napoleon; the name for the struggle erroneously taken as a personal noun; war ¹, -elle

Example Sentences

Often described as "elusive" and "secretive" by the press, the "guerrilla street artist" is a hero to some and a vandal to others.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

Petro, himself a former guerrilla, has preferred to reach deals with armed factions under his "Total Peace" plan.

From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026

But as a group, the Taliban sustained more than 20 years of war against the US and its Nato allies, so its capacity to carry out unconventional and guerrilla warfare is well evidenced.

From BBC • Feb. 27, 2026

In college he spent summers hitchhiking around South America, hiking to Machu Picchu and mostly ignoring warnings of guerrilla activity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

She and the children were living with the partisan guerrilla fighters in the Belorussian forest.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Related Words

• commando
• mercenary
• terrorist