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
  • FilmNation‘s hire of former Universal, DreamWorks and Fox head Stacey Snider was a coup.
    Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 12 May 2026
  • Playing in the state of Utah during the last two basketball seasons, first at Utah Prep Academy for his final year of high school before attending BYU, Dybantsa would be a coup for the Jazz as a rare elite draft prospect with an in-state background.
    Scott Phillips, New York Times, 11 May 2026
Noun
  • Built in 1882, Iolani Palace is where the last ruling monarchs – King Kalakaua, his wife Queen Kapiolani and his sister Queen Liliuokalani – lived until the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1893.
    Kathleen Wong, USA Today, 18 May 2026
  • Four waves of protest since 2017 have explicitly demanded its overthrow.
    Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 4 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • After the fallout over the Epstein files’ revelations on Mandelson, Rayner led a lawmakers’ revolt to force the government to cede control to Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee to decide which documents should be released into the public domain.
    ABC News, ABC News, 14 May 2026
  • Trump is facing something of a revolt at home.
    David Goldman, CNN Money, 14 May 2026
Noun
  • Trump then referred to his $5 billion lawsuit against the BBC, over edits made in a 2024 documentary on the January 6 insurrection.
    Ted Johnson, Deadline, 15 May 2026
  • But for those less familiar—say, a teenager who was just 10 when the January 6 insurrection happened—the museum does not guide.
    Kelsey Ables, The Atlantic, 15 May 2026
Noun
  • In January, 2019, amid the popular uprising that would ultimately dissolve Bashir’s government, Ibrahim’s employer assisted the family in obtaining visas and plane tickets to Jordan.
    Annie Hylton, New Yorker, 14 May 2026
  • Cody Bellinger then grounded into a forceout that produced a run, Amed Rosario got an RBI on an infield hit and Grisham capped the uprising with his sixth home run.
    ABC News, ABC News, 12 May 2026
Noun
  • The Nigerian government has denied that the country allows religious persecution, and analysts say large numbers of Muslims and Christians have been harmed by insurgency in northern Nigeria.
    Joe Walsh, CBS News, 16 May 2026
  • Al-Mainuki was born in 1982 in Mainok, or Mainuki, a village in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno, the heart of an insurgency crisis following the formation of the Boko Haram militant group around 2009.
    ABC News, ABC News, 16 May 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 20 May. 2026.

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