insurgency

[in-sur-juhn-see]

noun

plural

insurgencies 

1. the state or condition of being insurgent.

2. insurrection against an existing government, usually one's own, by a group not recognized as having the status of a belligerent.

3. rebellion within a group, as by members against leaders.

4. insurgence.

Word History and Origins

Origin of insurgency¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; insurg(ent) + -ency

Example Sentences

Players can choose to play as any of the countries in the region, including factions as the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, which is fighting an insurgency in northern Nigeria, or as the U.S.,

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But the jihadist insurgency has continued, and has made much of the north and east of the country ungovernable.

Read more on BBC

In the Central African Republic, where the government is trying to put down a persistent insurgency, Wagner mercenaries had a hand in a variety of business ventures, from mining gold to providing presidential bodyguards.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In response to a worsening Islamist insurgency, the junta stopped working with the former colonial power, France, and instead turned to Russia for military assistance.

Read more on BBC

It has become an urban guerilla force mounting an insurgency against the IDF in the ruins.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• dissent 
• insurrection 
• mutiny 
• revolt 
• revolution 
• uprising