secessionist
Americannoun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of secessionist
Explanation
A secessionist is someone who wants to break away from a larger group. People who make plans to split from their government and form a new country are secessionists. Secessionist comes from secede, "formally withdraw from," and its Latin roots, which mean "go apart." A secessionist wants to make a break, almost always from their country. The Civil War was a fight between the Union and a coalition of 11 secessionist states that supported slavery. These states split off from the rest of the country after Abraham Lincoln was elected on an anti-slavery platform.
Vocabulary lists containing secessionist
Unit 1: Telling Details
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Vocabulary from Readings 2, Unit 1
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Lincoln's Spymaster
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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.
Leaders of several armed and secessionist groups said the three‑day measure was in recognition of the "profound spiritual importance" of the papal visit, which starts on Wednesday, and the need to safeguard civilian life.
From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026
Carney, who grew up in Alberta but hasn’t publicly engaged on the secessionist movement, later gave ground, softening some regulations Smith opposed, which she welcomed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026
But the 66-year-old, known for his secessionist threats, eventually accepted the decision and allowed the snap poll to be held.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
Pablo Simón, political science professor at Carlos III University in Madrid, said that the secessionist movement was in a period of uncertain transition.
From Seattle Times ● May 9, 2024
Madison’s prudent and silent intervention rescued Jefferson from the secessionist implications of his revolutionary principles and artfully concealed the huge discrepancy between their respective views of the Constitution.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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.
