coup d'état

variants or coup d'etat
Definition of coup d'étatnext

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of coup d'état The Minister of the Supreme Court of Brazil, Alexandre de Moraes, participates in the plenary session of the Supreme Court (STF) in Brazil on Feb. 20, 2025, after the Attorney General's Office (PGR) indicts the former president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, for plotting a coup d'etat in 2023. Dan Mangan, CNBC, 30 July 2025 General Muhammadu Buhari, dictator of Nigeria, following a successful coup d'etat against Shehu Shagari. Adeola Adeosun, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 July 2025 Viktor learns of a coup d'etat in his country while at New York's JFK Airport, and, after the U.S. refuses to recognize his passport, he is forced to stay at the airport's terminal. Kevin Jacobsen, EW.com, 20 Mar. 2025 Spain The former king of Spain, Juan Carlos, saw an explosion of popularity in the 1980s after helping to foil a coup d'etat attempt. Justin Klawans, theweek, 27 Feb. 2024 The ceremony came after Nguema seized power in a coup d'etat last week, in the latest usurping of control in African countries. Justin Klawans, The Week, 4 Sep. 2023 Also in attendance at that event was the junta leader who seized power in Guinea a little over a year after Mali's coup d'etat. Krista Larson, ajc, 24 Sep. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coup d'état
Noun
  • Thousands marched through Buenos Aires on Tuesday to mark 50 years since the 1976 military coup that ushered in one of Latin America’s bloodiest dictatorships.
    ABC News, ABC News, 24 Mar. 2026
  • The Hollywood Reporter dropped the casting coup alongside the news that Criminal Minds had been picked up for a 20th season.
    Bethy Squires, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Trump has stated repeatedly that Cuba is next in his crosshairs, after his ongoing war against Iran and the overthrow in January of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
    Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2026
  • The jury appears to have been persuaded by prosecutors’ argument that the defendants were members of an antifa cell connected to an ideology that calls for the overthrow of the government.
    Emerson Clarridge Updated March 13, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Any deal almost certainly needs to involve a compromise as lawmakers on the left and right flanks revolt.
    ABC News, ABC News, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Any deal will almost certainly need to involve a compromise as lawmakers on the left and right flanks revolt.
    Lisa Mascaro, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • There were rebellions, insurrections and an Appian Way lined with crucifixions.
    Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Meanwhile, a separate insurrection led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, a Marxist political party, tore through the southern part of the country in the late 1980s, killing tens of thousands of people.
    Eranda Jayawickreme, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Müntzer’s teachings helped provoke the widespread uprising of the German peasants in 1525, and have served as a kind of progenitor inspiration for later communist thinkers, from Friedrich Engels to Ernst Bloch.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Herzen’s arrest was part of a sweeping crackdown on intellectual circles following the Decembrist uprising, as the tsarist regime sought to quell dissent.
    Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Yet in the early years of the insurgency there were talks to try and reach a settlement, until both sides accused each other of bad faith.
    Obi Anyadike, semafor.com, 23 Mar. 2026
  • During that period, Hezbollah engaged in insurgency warfare, fueled by religious zeal and supported by Iran.
    Asher Kaufman, The Conversation, 20 Mar. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Coup d'état.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coup%20d%27%C3%A9tat. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.

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