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• militant
  militant

  adjective

  aggressively active or combative in support of a cause.
• Militant
  Militant

  noun

  short for Militant Tendency

militant

American  

[mil-i-tuhnt] / ˈmɪl ɪ tənt /

adjective

1. aggressively active or combative in support of a cause.

   militant reformers.

   Synonyms:

   contentious, combative, belligerent

2. engaged in warfare; fighting.

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noun

• militants
  plural

1. a militant person.

2. a person engaged in warfare or combat.

militant ¹ British  

/ ˈmɪlɪtənt /

adjective

1. aggressive or vigorous, esp in the support of a cause

   a militant protest

2. warring; engaged in warfare

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noun

1. a militant person

Militant ² British  

/ ˈmɪlɪtənt /

noun

1. short for Militant Tendency

2. a member of Militant Tendency

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Synonym Usage

See fanatic.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• militancy
  noun
• militantness
  noun
• hypermilitant
  adjective
• nonmilitant
  adjective
• supermilitant
  adjective
• ultramilitant
  adjective
• unmilitant
  adjective
• hypermilitantly
  adverb
• militantly
  adverb
• nonmilitantly
  adverb
• unmilitantly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• militants
  plural

Etymology

Origin of militant

First recorded in 1400–1450; late Middle English, from Latin mīlitant- (stem of mīlitāns ), present participle of mīlitāre “to serve as a soldier”; see militate, -ant

Explanation

A militant is someone who is engaged in a war or who acts aggressively for their cause. If you are militant in your beliefs, you do not question them any more than a soldier questions his orders. In the context of undeclared or guerrilla warfare, enemy fighters are often referred to not as soldiers but as militants, because they are not members of a formal army. As an adjective, militant often has a negative feel — people on one side of a debate will often try to cast those on the other side as militants.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

militant Militant militants

His superpower seems to be life-ending, militant ignorance.

From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026

However, the market is likely still focused on the longer-term fallout from the attacks by the Houthi militant group on the country, as the Iranian-backed group has been targeting energy infrastructure, ANZ adds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

Before the war he worked as a blacksmith, they said, and neither he nor anyone else in the family has a political affiliation, whether to Hamas or any other militant groups.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026

White nets stretch high across the front of brick buildings in Pakistan's northern border region, a tactic borrowed from the Ukrainian battlefield to protect police against the latest militant threat -- drones.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

Only a small and militant sect of California writers was siding with Seabiscuit.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

Church Militant’s YouTube channel included a video posted Wednesday featuring a former Church Militant staff member, Joe Gallagher, representing a new organization called Truth Army.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 7, 2024

Militant environmentalism is more of a hook than a subject about which the film has a point of view.

From New York Times ● Apr. 6, 2023

This led to a rebellion against House Targaryen by the military arm of the Faith of the Seven, the Faith Militant, joined by some rebel Houses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2022

Militant leader Tayseer Jabari was among the dead.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2022

Until later, Gary, Your Militant Working Boy V Dr. Talc lit a Benson & Hedges, looking out of the window of his office in the Social Studies Building.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole

"TPLF militants and leaders are leaving Mekelle," the journalist said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 3, 2026

Islamabad says the militants use safe haven in Afghanistan to train and plan attacks in Pakistan.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

The use of the Dongfeng 15, if confirmed, would mark the first time Saudi Arabia has used a ballistic missile in its yearslong war with Houthi militants in Yemen.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

However, the closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline and the threat to shipping and infrastructure from Iran-backed Houthi militants continued to cloud the outlook for Gulf supply.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

Although Oliver’s speech had been discussed and approved by the NEC, his proposal was met with indignation by ANC militants, who insisted that sanctions must be maintained unchanged.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Related Words

• assertive
• bellicose
• belligerent
• militaristic
• vigorous
• warring