coup d'état

noun

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

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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 General Muhammadu Buhari, dictator of Nigeria, following a successful coup d'etat against Shehu Shagari. — Adeola Adeosun, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 July 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 See All Example Sentences for coup d'état
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coup d'état
  1. coup
  2. overthrow
  3. revolt
  4. insurrection
  5. uprising
  6. insurgency
Noun
  • The administration has quietly deepened engagement with Mali’s military government despite years of strained relations following the country’s coups and growing partnership with Russia.
    — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 23 July 2026
  • John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell star in the black comedy as a pair of veteran CIA officers who, ahead of the 1973 Chilean coup, are sent far from the action to Easter Island.
    — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 23 July 2026
Definition of coup
Noun
  • Since the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has remained de facto split between competing political and military centers of power.
    — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 14 July 2026
  • January's was the deadliest, when security forces killed thousands to crush nationwide demonstrations that started over economic woes and then snowballed into calls for Khamenei's overthrow.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 July 2026
Definition of overthrow
Noun
  • Andrew Garfield trades modern superheroes for medieval revolution in the trailer for The Uprising, Paul Greengrass’ historical drama inspired by England’s 1381 peasant revolt.
    — Sophie Miller, Rolling Stone, 16 July 2026
  • See The Sight Of John Brown's Raid Near the rivers sits the original armory guard house, where in 1859, abolitionist John Brown led a legendary but ultimately unsuccessful slave revolt.
    — Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 11 July 2026
Definition of revolt
Noun
  • Writer, historian, and activist Rebecca Solnit is the author of more than twenty-five books on feminism, western and urban history, popular power, social change and insurrection, wandering and walking, hope and catastrophe.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026
  • The 14th Amendment’s foundational principles include birthright citizenship, due process, equal protection under the law, and the prohibition for heads of state to engage in acts of insurrection.
    — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 21 July 2026
Definition of insurrection
Noun
  • This uprising of students at the Athens Polytechnic University and their famous pirate-radio broadcasts are commonly understood to be the beginning of the end of the junta.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 July 2026
  • Pride events are held today in San Diego to honor the Stonewall uprising of 1969, when police raided the Stonewall Inn in New York City and patrons fought back in a dayslong confrontation.
    — Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 July 2026
Definition of uprising
Noun
  • Northern Nigeria, one of the world’s poorest regions, is already under pressure from an insurgency crisis.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 July 2026
  • The Afghan Taliban and the Iraqi insurgency beat the United States through roadside bombs and sheer doggedness.
    — Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 17 July 2026
Definition of insurgency

Browse Nearby Words

coup
coup d'état
coup d'oeil
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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 25 Jul. 2026.

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