dissident

[dis-i-duhnt]

noun

1. a person who dissents.

adjective

1. disagreeing or dissenting, as in opinion or attitude.

   a ban on dissident magazines.

dissident

/ ˈdɪsɪdənt /

adjective

1. disagreeing; dissenting

noun

1. a person who disagrees, esp one who disagrees with the government

Other Word Forms

• dissidently adverb
• antidissident noun
• nondissident adjective
• dissidence noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dissident¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of dissident¹

C16: from Latin dissidēre to be remote from, from _dis- ¹ + sedēre to sit

Example Sentences

The opposition leader added that she is "very worried about the fate of Mikola Statkevich" - a veteran dissident who refused to leave Belarus yesterday and cross into Lithuania.

From BBC

Mikola Statkevich, a veteran dissident, refused to cross into Lithuania and Belarus's exiled opposition posted pictures of him sitting in no man's land at the border.

From BBC

Hong Kong dissidents, and other Chinese pro-democracy activists living in the UK, have expressed fears that these rooms could be used to hold and interrogate opponents of China's Communist regime.

From BBC

President Prabowo himself is accused of human rights abuses, such as the abduction of dissidents, under Suharto’s rule.

From Los Angeles Times

Colombia has experienced a rise in violence in recent months involving clashes between security forces and dissident rebels, paramilitaries or drug gangs.

From BBC

Related Words

• protester www.thesaurus.com
• rebel 
• separatist