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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

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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

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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

Capt Traoré has previously accused smugglers of taking large quantities of gold out of Burkina Faso illegally and said some of the proceeds were helping finance militant groups.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

But it is one that reflects both the growing ambition of his 350,000-strong militant army and its prowess with military tactics, missiles and drones.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

The dependence has endured despite decades of insurgency and a series of militant attacks that have made migrant workers vulnerable targets.

From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026

She quickly rounded up a half dozen other militant students and within the hour, every blackboard on campus had scrawled on it: “Malcolm to speak, 12 noon, ice-cream-shop.”

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

Militant Irish republicans had been paying close attention to Carson’s tactics — which anticipated Mao Zedong’s maxim about the source of political power — and would eagerly emulate his example in the years ahead.

From Salon ● Oct. 19, 2024

The agreement with St. Michael’s Media, the parent firm of the Church Militant website, comes even as the site’s future remains in flux.

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

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

The Saudis’ escalating fight with the Iran-backed Houthi militants poses new challenges to the country’s security and plans to transform its oil-dependent economy, according to the Wall Street Journal.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026

Thousands of U.S. airstrikes helped Iraqi and Syrian forces defeat the militants, and American troops remained in Iraq.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

She was released about a week later, after the group negotiated with the Iraqi government for the release of imprisoned militants, current and former U.S. officials said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

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

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 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

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Related Words

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

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