revolt 1 of 2

as in insurrection
open fighting against authority (as one's own government) soon the revolt had spread to every corner of the country

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

revolt

2 of 2

verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun revolt differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of revolt are insurrection, mutiny, rebellion, revolution, and uprising. While all these words mean "an outbreak against authority," revolt and insurrection imply an armed uprising that quickly fails or succeeds.

a revolt by the Young Turks that surprised party leaders
an insurrection of oppressed laborers

When is it sensible to use mutiny instead of revolt?

The meanings of mutiny and revolt largely overlap; however, mutiny applies to group insubordination or insurrection especially against naval authority.

a mutiny led by the ship's cook

When could rebellion be used to replace revolt?

While in some cases nearly identical to revolt, rebellion implies an open formidable resistance that is often unsuccessful.

open rebellion against the officers

When can revolution be used instead of revolt?

Although the words revolution and revolt have much in common, revolution applies to a successful rebellion resulting in a major change (as in government).

a political revolution that toppled the monarchy

When might uprising be a better fit than revolt?

The synonyms uprising and revolt are sometimes interchangeable, but uprising implies a brief, limited, and often immediately ineffective rebellion.

quickly put down the uprising

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of revolt
Noun
Ana has no choice to accept, thrust into the brewing revolt in Caimor's underworld led by rebels and an infamous dark witch, the Black Wraith. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 14 Apr. 2025 History shows that conclaves have ranged from a matter of hours to nearly three years, shaped by intrigue, deadlock, and even popular revolt. Dan Cody, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 May 2025
Verb
Dem governors revolt against Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs. FOXNews.com, 8 Apr. 2025 The leading role played in the war by the Vietnamese rural poor prompted Scott to wonder what motivated peasants to revolt. Nikil Saval, New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for revolt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for revolt
Noun
  • What’s the political climate, social climate that has to exist in order for an insurrection to appear?
    Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2025
  • It was suspended across the states during the entire Civil War; in counties in South Carolina that were overrun by the Ku Klux Klan during Reconstruction; in specific places in the Philippines during an insurrection in 1905; and in Hawaii following the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
    Kathryn Watson, CBS News, 9 May 2025
Verb
  • The conclusion of the thesis: Prostitution and illicit substances, which Feinberg said disgusted him personally, were impossible to police and should therefore be legalized.
    Dan Alexander, Forbes.com, 2 Apr. 2025
  • He isn’t disgusted by sexuality, just innocent and uninterested.
    Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2025
Verb
  • Its stories about an amateur tennis pro from a low-to-middle class family and his relationship with an artist looking to rebel against her family’s upper-class attitudes took advantage of their youthful vision to tell more stories about their parents’ lack of ambition.
    Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 20 May 2025
  • Related article Mavericks fans rebelled after Luka Dončić was traded.
    Matias Grez, CNN Money, 14 May 2025
Noun
  • Karen Young, founder of the inclusive body care brand Oui the People, similarly recalls the emotional labor of leading during collective crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 racial uprisings and the recent election.
    Jasmine Browley, Essence, 28 May 2025
  • Filmmakers, inspired by the uprising, began creating without hijab, without state approval, and often in complete secrecy.
    Ali Farahmand, IndieWire, 23 May 2025
Verb
  • But throughout the series, he became increasingly repulsed by these actions, which included enslaving thousands of women.
    Barry Levitt, Time, 27 May 2025
  • With every cringe, with every critique of her family’s behavior, Piper has been telegraphing that those values repulse her.
    Cyndy Etler, Hartford Courant, 28 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Congressional Republicans Thursday agreed to move forward with President Trump’s sprawling budget plan a day after a mutiny by right-wing lawmakers threatened to derail it.
    Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 10 Apr. 2025
  • In 1995, prosecutors wanted to question the former military dictator Chun Doo-hwan on insurrection and mutiny charges stemming from his role in a 1979 coup and a massacre of demonstrators the following year.
    Choe Sang-Hun, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025
Verb
  • Listeria bacteria in cucumbers sickened dozens of people in April and May and left at least nine people hospitalized, according to the FDA.
    Stephanie Armour, Miami Herald, 29 May 2025
  • Another round of cucumbers is being recalled in the wake of a salmonella outbreak that has sickened 26 people across 15 states.
    Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 23 May 2025
Noun
  • His relationship with Elisabeth Moss’ June was a complicated matter that involved fathering one of her children, assisting her efforts to escape from/bring down Gilead and then betraying her at a crucial point in the rebellion.
    Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 20 May 2025
  • In 1998, people all over the country commemorated the rebellion, though the sectarian divisions and the violence of the Troubles loomed large.
    Joseph Patrick Kelly, The Conversation, 20 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Revolt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/revolt. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

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