insurrection

[in-suh-rek-shuhn]

noun

1. an act or instance of rising in revolt, rebellion, or resistance against civil authority or an established government.

   Synonyms: mutiny, uprising, insurgency

insurrection

/ ˌɪnsəˈrɛkʃən /

noun

1. the act or an instance of rebelling against a government in power or the civil authorities; insurgency

Other Word Forms

• insurrectional adjective
• insurrectionally adverb
• insurrectionism noun
• insurrectionist noun
• insurrectionary noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of insurrection¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Late Latin insurrēctiōn-, stem of insurrēctiō, from insurrēct(us) “risen up, rebelled” (past participle of insurgere “to get up, ascend, rebel”; insurgent ) + -iō -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of insurrection¹

C15: from Late Latin insurrectiō, from insurgere to rise up

Example Sentences

Jihadists have for 16 years been waging an insurrection in the northeast with the aim of establishing a Caliphate.

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The aim, one government source told me, is to "instigate an insurrection, so that people go against the government in Kyiv… they are trying to destroy social cohesion."

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Days later, the US House of Representatives voted to impeach the president on a count of "incitement of insurrection" and the Senate later acquitted him.

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Oddly, Cassano was as likely to direct his anger at profitable traders as at unprofitable ones, for the anger was triggered not by financial loss but by the faintest whiff of insurrection.

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Yoon remains on trial for insurrection and other offences linked to his declaration of martial law.

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Related Words

• coup 
• insurgency 
• mutiny 
• revolt 
• revolution 
• riot 
• sedition 
• uprising 

When To Use

Why is insurrection trending?

On January 6, 2021, lookups for the word insurrection skyrocketed 22,358% on Dictionary.com after a mob of supporters of Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol building on the day Congress was set to certify the electoral vote count to confirm Joe Biden’s presidential election victory. Some journalists, political analysts, and politicians used the word insurrection to refer to the events that occurred in the nation’s capital.https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/1346960922615685121https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1346971096017297410