insurgent

1 of 2

noun

in·​sur·​gent in-ˈsər-jənt 

1

: a person who revolts against civil authority or an established government

especially : a rebel not recognized as a belligerent

2

: one who acts contrary to the policies and decisions of one's own political party

insurgent

2 of 2

adjective

: rising in opposition to civil authority or established leadership : rebellious

insurgently adverb

Did you know?

Is insurgent a new word?

Insurgent is not a particularly novel coinage; it has been in use as both a noun and an adjective for well over 200 years. Appearances of the word began to spike in the early 21st century, however, due to a combination of factors (including the appearance of such combatants in conflicts and the desire among journalists to avoid words that might seem biased, such as terrorist or freedom fighter).

The definition of the noun, which includes the phrase “a rebel not recognized as a belligerent,” refers to a specific sense of belligerent: “belonging to or recognized as an organized military power protected by and subject to the laws of war.”

Synonyms

Noun

• insurrectionary
• insurrectionist
• mutineer
• rebel
• red
• revolter
• revolutionary
• revolutionist

Adjective

• insurrectionary
• mutinous
• rebellious
• revolutionary

Examples of insurgent in a Sentence

Noun

Insurgents are trying to gain control of the country's transportation system.

the government subjected the insurgents to the most inhuman torture imaginable

Adjective

any insurgent soldiers will be dealt with harshly

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

On one side are the Houthis, an insurgent Shiite Islamist movement that grew out of a northwestern Yemeni tribe; on the other side is a regime backed by a coalition of Sunni Arab states, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. —Samanth Subramanian, The New York Review of Books, 30 Nov. 2023

As armed insurgents closed in on the capital, Aristide fled into exile and a U.S.-led multinational force intervened. —Jason Motlagh, Rolling Stone, 26 Nov. 2023

The statistics are telling: between 1775 and 1945, insurgents won against state armies about 25 percent of the time. —Audrey Kurth Cronin, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2023

In the first battle of Fallujah in early 2004, 38 U.S. troops were killed and at least 90 injured, with at least 200 al-Qaida or Iraqi insurgents killed and an unknown number of civilians killed or injured. —Javed Ali, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2023

The appointment was a major concession for McCarthy, but, from his perspective, turning an insurgent into a beholden ally was a matter of survival. —Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2023

The city was choked, its residents fleeing to escape the constant barrage of insurgent missiles and the long lines at bakeries running out of bread. —Mujib Mashal Jim Huylebroek, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2023

The third member to rise to the dais was Jim Jordan, a fifty-nine-year-old Republican from Ohio, who for years has been the Party’s most influential insurgent. —Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2023

An Israeli couple claims to have survived what could have been a deadly hostage situation by treating Hamas insurgents as guests. —Timothy H.j. Nerozzi Fox News, Fox News, 10 Oct. 2023

Adjective

For the past two decades, Cornel West has traveled the nation’s political back roads, making provocative comments and acting as a surrogate for insurgent Democratic presidential contenders. —Ken Thomas, WSJ, 5 Oct. 2023

In February 1980, former California Gov. Ronald Reagan, then an insurgent candidate from the party's ultraconservative wing, decided to pay for a debate in Nashua, New Hampshire. —David Faris, The Week, 21 Aug. 2023

A number of the looks that have made Sofia Richie-Grainge an insurgent style icon came from Waller's sleuthing, including an Old Celine off-the-shoulder dress from the house's 2017 fall runway collection. —Halie Lesavage, Harper's BAZAAR, 28 July 2023

As a guerrilla leader who helped raise an insurgent army from a bus stop outside JFK8, Mr. Smalls had been dazzlingly effective. —Noam Scheiber, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2023

That could cause problems for Republicans, because insurgent candidates typically don’t win statewide or swing-district races. —Dallas News, 9 Jan. 2023

In recent years, Tehran sought to play both sides of the Afghan civil war, supporting the Kabul government while also maintaining ties to the insurgent Taliban. —Ian Talley, WSJ, 25 Aug. 2021

So the only parties that really ever supported women's suffrage were these sort of insurgent third parties who had nothing to lose and everything to gain by attaching themselves to a new electorate. —Lila Thulin, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Mar. 2020

Robert Zarlenga, a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team, fires his M4 carbine at insurgent forces June 15, 2012, near Joint Security Station Hasan, southern Ghazni Province, Afghanistan. —Jeremy Hsu, Discover Magazine, 29 Jan. 2015

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Word History

Etymology

Noun

Latin insurgent-, insurgens, present participle of insurgere to rise up, from in- + surgere to rise — more at surge

First Known Use

Noun

1765, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1807, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

insurgent

1 of 2 noun

in·​sur·​gent in-ˈsər-jənt 

: a person who revolts : rebel

insurgent

2 of 2 adjective

: rebellious sense 1

Legal Definition

insurgent

1 of 2 noun

in·​sur·​gent in-ˈsər-jənt 

1

: a person who rises in revolt against civil authority or an established government

especially : one not recognized as a belligerent

2

: one that acts contrary to the established leadership (as of a political party, union, or corporation) or its decisions and policies

insurgent

2 of 2 adjective

: rising in opposition to civil or political authority or against an established government