mutiny
Americannoun
-
mutinies
plural
verb (used without object)
-
mutinies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
mutinied,
past participle, past
-
mutinying
present participle
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
mutinysimple
-
mutiniessimple
-
have mutiniedperfect
-
has mutiniedperfect
-
am mutinyingprogressive
-
are mutinyingprogressive
-
is mutinyingprogressive
-
have been mutinyingperfect progressive
-
has been mutinyingperfect progressive
Past
-
mutiniedsimple
-
had mutiniedperfect
-
was mutinyingprogressive
-
were mutinyingprogressive
-
had been mutinyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mutiny
1560–70; obsolete mutine to mutiny (< Middle French mutiner, derivative of mutin mutiny; see mutineer) + -y 3
Explanation
A mutiny is a rebellion against authority, like when sailors overthrow the captain of a ship or when a class of 8th graders refuses to dissect a frog in biology class. Mutiny comes from an old verb, mutine, which means "revolt," and a mutiny is still like a revolt. It can be a group of people, like in the famous Mutiny on the Bounty in 1789 when the crew of a British Royal Navy ship kicked the captain out so they could stay in Tahiti. (Totally worth it.) Mutiny also means "to refuse the order of the person in authority," so it doesn't always take place at sea or in the military, it can happen in a classroom and be every teacher's nightmare!
Vocabulary lists containing mutiny
The Cay
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Christopher Columbus' Diary: The First Voyage
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Refugee
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Ochieng described this latest mutiny as evidence of longstanding grievances within Niger's own military, compounded by the pressure the soldiers have been facing.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
Ochieng said the mutiny "demonstrates deep divisions and grievances within the security apparatus", in a country whose soldiers are "constantly in the line of fire, fighting militants".
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
The airbase where the mutiny began had itself been targeted twice by jihadists this year – once by an Islamic State affiliate and later by an al-Qaeda affiliate.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
During the Bounty’s infamous mutiny, Tahitian breadfruit saplings filled its hold.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
Giggling was a form of mutiny to the nun and she quelled it with a wintery narrowing of her eyes.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
Puckish and determined, Hockney didn’t shrink from mutinies small or large.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
China has taken some limited steps recently to prevent strikes, mutinies and violence on its fishing ships.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2023
Rights groups also warn that civilians usually bear the brunt of these mutinies.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 28, 2023
In fact, she began many economic policies that flourished under Mr. Ramos, and he successfully defended Ms. Aquino’s fragile democratic government against repeated military mutinies.
From New York Times ● Jul. 31, 2022
Is what happened like the mutinies that happened on ships long ago?
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
He briefly mutinied, demanding back-pay for his soldiers, promotions and a political position for his brother.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2025
Around 3 p.m., she and the two other employees working that day mutinied.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2025
There was further controversy last year when members of the Spanish women's team mutinied against their coach Jorge Vilda.
From Reuters ● Aug. 31, 2023
A few years after the showdown at Worms, unpaid troops in the Habsburg Emperor’s army mutinied, then sacked Rome and the Vatican.
From Slate ● Apr. 21, 2023
But when he tried to get up, his body mutinied against movement.
From "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier
On 7 December, mutinying soldiers claimed to have overthrown the Benin president.
From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026
By the end of his reign, Roman armies in Gaul and Hispania were mutinying.
From Textbooks ● Apr. 19, 2023
It’s the captain’s job to ensure their ship is stocked with food, water, and ammo lest they run the risk of their crew mutinying from a lack of provisions.
From The Verge ● Apr. 29, 2022
In other words, in waging endless war, Americans are also, in effect, mutinying against the planet.
From Salon ● Dec. 7, 2019
They were always showing Columbus discovering America, having one helluva time getting old Ferdinand and Isabella to lend him the dough to buy ships with, and then the sailors mutinying on him and all.
From "The Catcher in the Rye" by J. D. Salinger
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
