as in rebellious
given to resisting authority or another's control
today's rebel chefs feel free to ignore the dictates of classic French cuisine
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in insurgent
a person who rises up against authority
the rebel would not submit peacefully, even after he was captured
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to revolt
to rise up against established authority
the colonists rebelled in the wake of an onslaught of abuses
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rebel
Cassell Ferere, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
The rebel run is the biggest of them all.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
Rebecca Aizin, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
The Twelve Articles then became a document that the movement everywhere acknowledged, even when the rebels did not know exactly what the articles contained, and even though many areas revised them to suit local circumstances.
—Literary Hub, 25 Sep. 2025
Stephen Galloway, HollywoodReporter, 16 Sep. 2025
Ali—or Richard Durham channeling Ali—would write just months after the fight that some part of him had always rebelled against the primal allure of his sport.
—Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rebel
Adjective
Offering a complete range of tailored clothing, leather jackets, footwear, and accessories, JV denotes the taste of high fashion with a rebel aesthetic.
—Cassell Ferere, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
The rebel run is the biggest of them all.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
Noun
Directed by the iconic Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another stars DiCaprio as Bob Ferguson, a vigilante and former rebel who is on the run from Penn's Officer Steven Lockjaw.
—Rebecca Aizin, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
The Twelve Articles then became a document that the movement everywhere acknowledged, even when the rebels did not know exactly what the articles contained, and even though many areas revised them to suit local circumstances.
—Literary Hub, 25 Sep. 2025
Verb
Redford rebelled against his father’s cautiousness and indeed against all expectations, even after the family moved to the more upscale Van Nuys.
—Stephen Galloway, HollywoodReporter, 16 Sep. 2025
Ali—or Richard Durham channeling Ali—would write just months after the fight that some part of him had always rebelled against the primal allure of his sport.
—Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rebel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rebel
Adjective
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Do something semi-rebellious in honor of Lane Kim Like dyeing your hair or joining a band!—
Andrea Wurzburger,
PEOPLE,
5 Oct. 2025
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Kimmel is once again on the air throughout the country now that rebellious affiliate owners Nexstar and Sinclair have backed down and agreed to resume airing his ABC late-night show after a weeklong standoff.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Jahmai Jones’ two-run single in the top of the fifth proved the difference, punching Detroit’s ticket to the playoffs and ensuring the Tigers would go into Game 162 with a chance to claw back the AL Central title from the insurgent Cleveland Guardians on the final day of the regular season.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
27 Sep. 2025
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Labels matter Security analysts say the situation in Haiti continues to defy clear international legal characterization and the choice of labels – crisis, armed conflict, gangs, terrorist groups, armed groups, criminal groups, insurgents – carries significant legal and humanitarian implications.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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If an investor on one of the famous reality TV shows for budding entrepreneurs suggested a similar arrangement, audiences would revolt.—
Matt Emma,
USA Today,
6 Oct. 2025
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The awards can also prompt investors to revolt.—
Amanda Gerut,
Fortune,
5 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Though the song order is Easter egg intentional – as with everything Swift – it’s bookended by a declaration of romantic salvation and a narrative from the perspective of a weary, yet defiant showgirl.—
Melissa Ruggieri,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
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Polis has sought to avoid public fights with the federal government over immigration, unlike his more publicly defiant counterparts in Illinois and California.—
Seth Klamann,
Denver Post,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Yet through Bob, Anderson finds his way into this story in a way that feels self-reflective and in conversation with a whole generation of coulda been revolutionaries.—
Richard Newby,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Sep. 2025
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Assata Shakur, the Black revolutionary and godmother to Tupac Shakur, has died, Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported last Friday, September 26.—
Walden Green,
Pitchfork,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In 1841, John Quincy Adams stood before the Supreme Court and defended a group of enslaved captives who mutinied aboard the Spanish slave ship Amistad.—
Time,
Time,
24 Sep. 2025
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In 1913, Swiss Guards mutinied for a week in response but eventually received military training as Repond wanted, Alvarez wrote in The Pope's Soldiers: A Military History of the Modern Vatican.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
7 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rebel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rebel. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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