rebellious

[ri-bel-yuhs]

adjective

1. defying or resisting some established authority, government, or tradition; insubordinate; inclined to rebel.

   Synonyms: contumacious, disobedient, refractory, rebel, seditious, mutinous, insurgent, defiant

2. pertaining to or characteristic of rebels or rebellion.

3. (of things) resisting treatment; refractory.

rebellious

/ rɪˈbɛljəs /

adjective

1. showing a tendency towards rebellion

2. (of a problem, etc) difficult to overcome; refractory

Other Word Forms

• rebelliously adverb
• rebelliousness noun
• half-rebellious adjective
• half-rebelliously adverb
• half-rebelliousness noun
• nonrebellious adjective
• nonrebelliously adverb
• nonrebelliousness noun
• quasi-rebellious adjective
• quasi-rebelliously adverb
• semirebellious adjective
• semirebelliously adverb
• semirebelliousness noun
• unrebellious adjective
• unrebelliously adverb
• unrebelliousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of rebellious¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin rebelliōsus, from Latin rebelli(ō) “war renewal, revolt” ( rebellion ) + -ōsus -ous

Example Sentences

But it rides on a brilliantly tuned air suspension with adaptive dampers to tie down rebellious momenta.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“In the myths, Tano was always rebellious,” Autumn signs to me, her fingers barely in view.

Read more on Literature

Mariona says she ended up on the first floor - reserved for "the rebellious ones - the ones they considered fallen women".

Read more on BBC

He says he would do basically anything that felt “rebellious and expressive.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

We are both artists and a bit rebellious when it comes to things like that.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• alienated 
• disaffected 
• fractious 
• recalcitrant 
• restless 
• turbulent 
• unruly 
• warring www.thesaurus.com

When To Use

What does rebellious mean?

Rebellious is an adjective that describes someone who resists or defies rules.Someone who acts in such a way can be called a rebel. However, the word rebel can also be used to refer to a revolutionary trying to overthrow a government. Such actions can be described as rebellious, but rebellious is much more commonly used to describe people or actions that break the rules, resist authority, or otherwise challenge the status quo. It’s especially applied to teenagers who act this way.The noun rebelliousness refers to such behavior. The noun rebellion can refer to this, but it’s also used to refer to an attempt to overthrow a government (rebelliousness isn’t typically used this way.)Example: Danielle was labeled rebellious for refusing to wear her uniform to school.