dissident
Americannoun
adjective
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of dissident
1525–35; < Latin dissident- (stem of dissidēns, present participle of dissidēre to sit apart), equivalent to dis- dis- 1 + -sid- (combining form of sed- repair 1 ) + -ent- -ent
Explanation
If you are a dissident, you are a person who is rebelling against a government. Dissidents can do their work peacefully or with violence. Dissident is closely related to the word, dissent, which means objecting. People who are dissidents show their dissent. Catholic priests who advocate allowing women into the priesthood could be called dissidents, as could the Puritans who left England to live in colonial America. As an adjective, a dissident member of a group is one who disagrees with the majority of members.
Vocabulary lists containing dissident
Power Prefix: dis-
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Refugee
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The prosecution suggested that the disorder which broke out had been deliberately orchestrated by dissident republicans to coincide with the presence of MTV.
From BBC • Jul. 3, 2026
This will likely be received negatively by Iranian dissident groups.
From BBC • Jun. 17, 2026
In one message, club leaders warned members of “an improper email blast” from a dissident group.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026
A Chinese dissident who fled his country on a rubber boat has been detained in South Korea after spending hours at sea.
From BBC • May 27, 2026
The nearest thing classical music had to a genuine political dissident in the 1930s was the Hungarian modernist Bela Bartok.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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.
