Definition of MILITANTNESS

Examples of militant in a Sentence

an angry and militant speech
political radicals with a militant unwillingness to compromise on any issue

Recent Examples of militant from the Web

President Donald Trump has sided strongly with Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the dispute, publicly backing their contention that Doha is a supporter of Islamic militant groups and a destabilizing force in the Middle East.

— Bloomberg.com, "Report: U.A.E. Behind Hacking of Qatari Media," 17 July 2017
Instead, this was the sartorial equivalent of burning your draft card: not military but militant, with more than a bit of in-your-face attitude.

— laurie brookins, The Hollywood Reporter, "Streetwear Gets the Spotlight at the New York Men's Shows," 15 July 2017
Mr. Sayed was chosen to lead the group in Afghanistan after his predecessor, Abdul Hasib, was killed in April during a special forces raid in Nangarhar Province, where the militant group has been active.

— michael r. gordon, New York Times, "ISIS Leader in Afghanistan Is Killed by Drone, Pentagon Says," 14 July 2017
While ISIS is predominately based in Iraq and Syria, the militant group extended its operations to Afghanistan in 2015.

— aria bendix, The Atlantic, "Pentagon Says ISIS Leader in Afghanistan Is Dead," 14 July 2017
Around 300 ISIS fighters are being held in a 5,400-square-foot territory in Mosul—the militant group’s de facto capital in Iraq—

— aria bendix, The Atlantic, "Hundreds of ISIS Fighters Remain in Mosul," 5 July 2017
But a year later, his goal of reconciling with the island’s many militant and separatist groups is in danger of slipping away.

— ben otto, WSJ, "Philippines’ Combative Duterte Gets Opponent He Didn’t Want: Islamic State," 29 June 2017
No negotiations The government ruled out negotiations after reports that Abdullah Maute, one of two brothers who formed the militant group carrying their name, wanted to trade a Catholic priest hostage for his parents arrested this month.

— kanupriya kapoor, The Christian Science Monitor, "Five weeks after ISIS captured town, residents forced to serve, marry, and fight for militants," 27 June 2017
Kim said Raishani wanted to join and train with the militant group after helping another man get there.

— CBS News, "New York man charged with trying to aid ISIS," 22 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'militant.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of militant

15th century

militant Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of militant

aggressive, militant, assertive, self-assertive mean obtrusively energetic especially in pursuing particular goals. aggressive implies a disposition to dominate often in disregard of others' rights or in determined and energetic pursuit of one's ends. aggressive in his business dealings militant also implies a fighting disposition but suggests not self-seeking but devotion to a cause, movement, or principle. militant protesters rallied against the new law assertive suggests bold self-confidence in expression of opinion. the more assertive speakers dominated the forum self-assertive connotes forwardness or brash self-confidence. a self-assertive young upstart

militant