anti-authority

adjective

an·​ti-au·​thor·​i·​ty ˌan-tē-ə-ˈthär-ə-tē 

-ȯ-, 

-ˈthȯr-, 

ˌan-ˌtī-

: opposed to or hostile toward authority : antiauthoritarian

The notion of educators being in loco parentis did not survive the anti-authority upheavals of the 1960s.

—Jon Kyl

Examples of anti-authority in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adams continued to stake out a personal brand as a proponent of common sense in defiance of groupthink and jargon, but his barbs became less anti-authority and more laced with grievance and ideological signaling. —Rob Salkowitz, Forbes.com, 13 Jan. 2026

While Bruce the shark tore through limbs, there were also conspiracy thrillers, period dramas, counterculture satires, and deeply anti-authority crime flicks to rule the roost. —Christina Newland, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025

While punk rock’s counterculture spirit was often associated with anti-authority sentiments, the OC punk bands were more varied with that message. —Charlie Vargas, Oc Register, 5 June 2025

Instead, Durov has spent years cultivating Telegram’s image as a proudly anti-authority platform. —Morgan Meaker, WIRED, 29 Aug. 2024

By the late ’60s, aided by a free-love, anti-authority mentality, folks began hacking the legs off their jeans to create shorts. —Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 4 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1877, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for anti-authority

• exteriority
• inferiority
• superiority
• authority
• majority
• minority
• priority
• seniority
• sonority
• sorority