revolutionary

American  

[rev-uh-loo-shuh-ner-ee] / ˌrɛv əˈlu ʃəˌnɛr i /

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, characterized by, or of the nature of a revolution, or a sudden, complete, or marked change.

   a revolutionary junta.

2. radically new or innovative; outside or beyond established procedure, principles, etc..

   a revolutionary discovery.

   Synonyms:

   unorthodox, drastic, novel, unprecedented

3. (initial capital letter) of or relating to the American Revolution or to the period contemporaneous with it in U.S. history.

   Revolutionary heroes; Revolutionary weapons.

4. revolving.

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noun

plural

revolutionaries

1. a revolutionist.

revolutionary ¹ British  

/ ˌrɛvəˈluːʃənərɪ /

noun

1. a person who advocates or engages in revolution

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adjective

1. relating to or characteristic of a revolution

2. advocating or engaged in revolution

3. radically new or different

   a revolutionary method of making plastics

4. rotating or revolving

Revolutionary ² British  

/ ˌrɛvəˈluːʃənərɪ /

adjective

1. of or relating to the conflict or period of the War of American Independence (1775–83)

2. of or relating to any of various other Revolutions, esp the Russian Revolution (1917) or the French Revolution (1789)

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Other Word Forms

• antirevolutionary noun
• nonrevolutionary adjective
• post-Revolutionary adjective
• prerevolutionary adjective
• prorevolutionary adjective
• revolutionarily adverb
• revolutionariness noun
• semirevolutionary adjective
• ultrarevolutionary adjective
• unrevolutionary adjective

Etymology

Origin of revolutionary

First recorded in 1765–75; revolution + -ary

Explanation

A revolutionary person fearlessly advocates radical change. Revolutionary people and ideas challenge the status quo and might be violent or willing to upset the natural order to achieve their goals. Like the word revolve, it's all about turning things around. Revolutionary leaders want to change the world by any means necessary. Before he was the coolest face on a T-shirt, Che Guevara was ready to die for change in South America (and in fact, he did). You don't need to be violent to be revolutionary, just ask Gandhi and Rev. Martin Luther King. You don't even need to be political. Alexander McQueen, John Lennon, and Picasso could tell you that.

Example Sentences

During part of their discussion, they explored what made Blume’s writing so revolutionary for young readers and how her own surprisingly frank upbringing gave her the freedom to go there.

From Slate • Apr. 18, 2026

Finding a revolutionary artist during cocktail hour at the opening gala of Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s new David Geffen Galleries was like shooting fish in a barrel.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026

Ask any historian—or child, for that matter—to name the “father of the telephone,” and most will say Alexander Graham Bell, who patented his revolutionary invention in 1876.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

Citadelle Laferrière, also known as Citadelle Henry, was built by revolutionary Henri Christophe shortly after Haiti gained independence from France.

From BBC • Apr. 12, 2026

I fall asleep thinking how different this revolutionary song is from Mamá’s Spanish song about the girl trapped in a tower at sea.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar

Related Words

• contemporary
• innovative
• modern
• radical