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con·fed·er·ate | \ kən-ˈfe-d(ə-)rət 
\
\Definition of confederate
(Entry 1 of 3)
1 : united in a league : allied
2 capitalized : of or relating to the Confederate States of America
confederate
nounDefinition of confederate (Entry 2 of 3)
1 : ally, accomplice
2 capitalized : an adherent of the Confederate States of America or their cause
confederate
verbcon·fed·er·ate | \ kən-ˈfe-də-ˌrāt \
\confederated; confederating
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Other Words from confederate
Verb
confederative \ kən-ˈfe-d(ə-)rə-tiv , -də-ˌrā- \ adjective
, -də-ˌrā- \ adjectiveSynonyms & Antonyms for confederate
Synonyms: Noun
Synonyms: Verb
- ally,
- associate,
- band (together),
- club,
- coalesce,
- cohere,
- conjoin,
- cooperate,
- federate,
- league,
- unite
Antonyms: Verb
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Examples of confederate in a Sentence
Noun
the Yankees and the Confederates
the police were able to track down his confederates once the thief started talking Verb
the nations confederated in order to lower international trade barriers
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Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Also, confederate jasmine does not seem to mind a hard pruning back to near the ground, if needed.
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Tom Maccubbin, orlandosentinel.com, "Trim Knock Out roses when most flowers have declined," 29 June 2019 Plus, DeLue said, most confederate monuments aren't significant works of art discussed in art history lectures.
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Kristin Lam, USA TODAY, "A California school board has voted to paint over a mural of George Washington. Educators want to save it," 11 July 2019 During the Civil War, 500 of the 600 students enrolled at UVA would serve as confederate soldiers.
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Morgan Hines, USA TODAY, "Ghosts of Charlottesville: Racial divide haunts city as case against white supremacist closes," 14 July 2019 On the same night, Virginia Republicans nominated a hard-right Senate candidate, Corey Stewart, who has made racially charged attacks on immigrants and supported confederate symbols.
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Jonathan Tamari, Anchorage Daily News, "Primary results show the GOP is all in on Trump," 16 June 2018 Texas has the second highest number of confederate monuments of any states in the nation still left standing at 209.
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Doug Criss And Elizabeth Elkin, CNN, "The state leading the way in removing Confederate monuments? Texas," 5 June 2018 Alfred Brophy, a professor at the University of Alabama Law School, discusses the legal restrictions facing cities and towns that want to remove confederate monuments and memorials.
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Bloomberg.com, "Bloomberg Law Brief: Legal Hurdles for Monument Removal (Audio)," 18 Aug. 2017 Debates raged over Dana Schutz’s abstract rendering of Emmett Till at the Whitney Biennial and the hundreds of confederate monuments throughout the nation.
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Lori Waxman, chicagotribune.com, "The year in visual art was a dizzying reflection of today," 14 Dec. 2017 Other lawmakers, most of them Democrats, have called for the plaque’s removal, along with a review of other confederate symbols around the Capitol grounds.
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Alejandra Matos, Houston Chronicle, "Abbott to ask for review of Confederate plaque in Capitol," 27 Oct. 2017 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Henderson, Russo, and a small group of confederates are trying to make cryo-EM affordable.
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Eric Hand, Science | AAAS, "‘We need a people’s cryo-EM.’ Scientists hope to bring revolutionary microscope to the masses," 23 Jan. 2020 The new statue was celebrated by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, who was mired in a blackface scandal earlier this year and Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, who wants the confederate statues removed.
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CBS News, "Statue depicts black man on horseback "speaking back" to people looking at Confederate monuments," 11 Dec. 2019 Spooky spots: These days, confederate soldiers have been reported to still haunt the Central Burying Ground, says Baltrusis, who also runs the Boston Haunts ghost tour.
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Condé Nast Traveler, "8 Most Haunted Cities in America That You Should Visit," 25 Oct. 2019 Interact with members of the union and confederate armies, maybe even shake hands with Abraham Lincoln before witnessing the recreation of The First Battle of Petersburg.
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cleveland.com, "BrewFest Waterfront District in Lorain and 12 more things to do around Cleveland this weekend," 10 Aug. 2019 The idea that al-Qaida confederates would be scared straight is especially ludicrous.
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Steve Chapman, chicagotribune.com, "Column: The expensive folly of federal executions," 31 July 2019 Then last week it was disassembled and loaded on flatbeds for the trip to Richmond to take its permanent place near the confederate monuments.
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CBS News, "Statue depicts black man on horseback "speaking back" to people looking at Confederate monuments," 11 Dec. 2019 After the drunken tirade, Esposito would continue to swear loudly, especially when his daughter was outside, and began displaying a confederate flag.
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David Owens, courant.com, "Fence now separates Plainville family from ‘self-avowed racist’ next door who flew Confederate flag," 26 Nov. 2019 The President and his confederates have warned of the consequences of impeachment.
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David Remnick, The New Yorker, "The Sober Clarity of the Impeachment Witnesses," 15 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Former Birmingham Mayor William Bell ordered a monument to confederate veterans covered in August 2017.
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Anna Beahm | Abeahm@al.com, al, "Here’s what Randall Woodfin said about Confederate monuments," 12 Feb. 2020 Should confederate monuments be preserved or destroyed?
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Dodie Kazanjian, Vogue, "Julie Mehretu Started Her Majestic New Paintings Right After The Election," 4 Sep. 2017 The Warren County monument is one of four memorials to confederate soldiers in Ohio.
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Cincinnati.com, "Residents demand Confederate monument be returned," 22 Aug. 2017 The jury would not be allowed to know about Tensing’s Great Smoky Mountains confederate flag T-shirt.
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Brandon Harris, New Republic, "Searching for Justice for Samuel DuBose," 20 June 2017
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'confederate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for confederate
confederate
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of confederate
formal : a person who helps someone do something
: a soldier, citizen, or supporter of the Confederacy during the American Civil War
See the full definition for confederate in the English Language Learners Dictionary
confederate
adjectivecon·fed·er·ate | \ kən-ˈfe-də-rət \
\Kids Definition of confederate
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : united in a league
2 capitalized : of or relating to the southern Confederacy
Her grandfather collected Confederate stamps.
confederate
nounKids Definition of confederate (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : a member of a league of persons, parties, or states
2 : accomplice
3 capitalized : a soldier of or a person who sided with the southern Confederacy
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Time Traveler for confederate
The first known use of confederate was in the 14th century
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