rebellion
Americannoun
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open, organized, and armed resistance to one's government or ruler.
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resistance to or defiance of any authority, control, or tradition.
- Synonyms:
- disobedience, insubordination
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the act of rebelling.
noun
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organized resistance or opposition to a government or other authority
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dissent from an accepted moral code or convention of behaviour, dress, etc
Usage
What does rebellion mean? A rebellion is an attempt to overthrow a government—an organized revolution.It can also refer to a revolt against another form of authority. More generally, rebellion can refer to an action or behavior that resists or defies rules or norms or otherwise challenges the status quo.The verb rebel means to engage in rebellion. As a noun, rebel can refer to a revolutionary or to a person who is defiant or disobedient. Such a defiant person can be called rebellious, and the noun rebelliousness refers to such behavior. Rebellion can also refer to this, as in I went through a phase of teenage rebellion.Example: The rebellion is being led by a coalition of factions that all have the same goal—to topple the regime.
Other Word Forms
- nonrebellion noun
- prerebellion adjective
- semirebellion noun
- subrebellion noun
Etymology
Origin of rebellion
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English rebellioun, from Old French, from Latin rebelliōn-, stem of rebelliō; equivalent to rebel + -ion
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.
I didn’t experience my life as a rebellion against reality.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026
India in the last two years stepped up its campaign against the last remnants of the Naxalite rebellion, named after the village in the Himalayan foothills where the Maoist-inspired insurgency began nearly six decades ago.
From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026
For those who are attempting to quit the apps for good, our biggest act of rebellion, now, is returning to our home kitchens.
From Salon • Mar. 3, 2026
The story will start with a tournament at Harrenhal castle and then follow Robert's rebellion.
From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026
A basic description of the Scientific Revolution is to say that it represented a successful rebellion by the mathematicians against the authority of the philosophers, and of both against the authority of the theologians.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Definitions 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.
