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Synonyms

subversive

American  
[suhb-vur-siv] / səbˈvɜr sɪv /

adjective

  1. Also subversionary tending or intending to subvert or overthrow, destroy, or undermine an established or existing system, especially a legally constituted government or a set of beliefs.

    Synonyms:
    destructive, seditious, treacherous, traitorous

noun

  1. a person who adopts subversive principles or policies.

subversive British  
/ səbˈvɜːsɪv /

adjective

  1. liable to subvert or overthrow a government, legally constituted institution, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a person engaged in subversive activities, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • countersubversive noun
  • nonsubversive adjective
  • nonsubversively adverb
  • nonsubversiveness noun
  • self-subversive adjective
  • subversively adverb
  • subversiveness noun
  • subversivism noun
  • unsubversive adjective
  • unsubversively adverb
  • unsubversiveness noun

Etymology

Origin of subversive

1635–45; < Latin subvers ( us ) (past participle of subvertere to subvert ) + -ive

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 think “Animal House” was also subtly subversive.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

In 2015, he transformed the dilapidated Tropicana lido in Weston-super-Mare, which he had visited as a child, into the subversive tourist attraction Dismaland.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

Just for a moment, I wanted to join the badass gang that made subversive movies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026

The debut by Pushcart-winning short story writer Kim Samek blends subversive humor with the absurd in a memorable collection of stories written during the COVID-19 pandemic.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 30, 2026

Experience had taught them that in the end the fox always eats the hens, despite the subversive ballads that were traveling from mouth to mouth preaching just the opposite.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

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.