1
as in deserter
a person who abandons a cause or organization usually without right
an apostate from communism, he later became one of its harshest critics
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in traitor
one who betrays a trust or an allegiance
became an apostate to liberalism after he had gotten wealthy
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in renegade
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of apostate
Warren P. Strobel, arkansasonline.com, 26 Jan. 2025
The speech reflected his role in the campaign: an attack dog deployed most often to the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan, where the campaign believes its apostate of elite culture connects with the white working-class voters who may decide the election.
—Eric Cortellessa, TIME, 26 Sep. 2024
Many like him feel like these apostates among Tesla’s faithful have been little more than fair-weather friends of Musk.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 10 June 2024
All the while, Islamist leaders throughout the Muslim world have vilified Riyadh as a U.S. lackey and an apostate regime.
—Bernard Haykel, Foreign Affairs, 12 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for apostate
Adjective
The Islamic State group follows a hard-line version of Sunni Islam and considers Shiite Muslims to be apostates.
—Warren P. Strobel, arkansasonline.com, 26 Jan. 2025
The speech reflected his role in the campaign: an attack dog deployed most often to the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan, where the campaign believes its apostate of elite culture connects with the white working-class voters who may decide the election.
—Eric Cortellessa, TIME, 26 Sep. 2024
Many like him feel like these apostates among Tesla’s faithful have been little more than fair-weather friends of Musk.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 10 June 2024
All the while, Islamist leaders throughout the Muslim world have vilified Riyadh as a U.S. lackey and an apostate regime.
—Bernard Haykel, Foreign Affairs, 12 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for apostate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for apostate
Noun
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Badghis and Faryab, along the line demarcating Afghanistan and Turkmenistan, are in particularly poor shape as deserters leave behind dwindling numbers of guards.—
George Gavrilis,
Foreign Affairs,
4 June 2015
-
Lincoln made frequent stops in the county and tried cases there as an attorney, according to the city, and Marshall was the site of an extended dispute during the Civil War involving Union Army deserters.—
John Tuohy,
IndyStar,
3 July 2025
Noun
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Taiwan’s parties, in other words, portray their opponents not just as politically different but as autocratic traitors.—
LEV NACHMAN,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Aug. 2025
-
Foundation is worried about the traitors, the Empire is worried about the Galactic Council, the Emperor is worried about the other emperors and the robot.—
Jeff Conway,
Forbes.com,
9 July 2025
Adjective
-
There was something renegade about it, something deeply irreverent.—
Rachel Handler,
Vulture,
1 Aug. 2025
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John Oliver, whose contract to host Last Week Tonight comes up next year, has continued to be a renegade voice within the ever-increasingly conservative Warner Bros Discovery family.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
18 July 2025
Noun
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According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, last year was the worst year yet for peace in the country since a 2016 deal was struck between the FARC, Colombia’s largest rebel group, and the Colombian state.—
Ladan Anoushfar,
CNN Money,
6 Aug. 2025
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In 2024, a group of UN experts said that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were fighting alongside the rebels.—
Pol Ballús,
New York Times,
30 July 2025
Adjective
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Such was the case this past weekend, when tens of millions of fans keyed in on the denouement of the college basketball season at the expense of lesser spectacles such as spring football and one notoriously schismatic pro golf startup.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
9 Apr. 2025
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The potential members of a schismatic Catholic sect are located in areas of the world such as the United States, where the church has significant financial resources and assets, plus a wide array of independent Catholic institutions that operate largely outside the hierarchy of the church.—
Massimo Faggioli,
Foreign Affairs,
11 Oct. 2018
Noun
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Lahav emphasized that stringent measures would need to be taken in Israel's outreach to Iranian insurgent groups to avoid creating outcomes with the potential to be just as unfavorable, or even more unfavorable, to national and regional security.—
Tom O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 July 2025
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Saturday’s bracket gets going with one-time tourney staple UCLA and insurgent Murray State.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
13 June 2025
Adjective
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During his first five-year contract, Bennett, his staff and the board winnowed down the company’s budget to better match annual expenses and ticket sales, while also creating the Detour series of smaller, nontraditional opera works to expand the company’s audience.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Aug. 2025
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From start to finish, our nontraditional wedding showed me that the right relationship, much like the correct condiment, makes life’s chaotically sandwiched moments go down a little easier.—
Heather Schroering,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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In mid-July, after a recent spate of sectarian violence in Syria’s south, Israel launched airstrikes on Syrian government facilities in Damascus.—
Dalia Dassa Kaye,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Aug. 2025
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Over 1,500 Alawites were killed in sectarian violence during a 72-hour period in March, while July's Suwayda clashes left over 250 dead, exposing the fragility of Sharaa's promise to protect minorities.—
Güney Yıldız,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Apostate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apostate. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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