as in debate
variance of opinion on a matter
a democracy relies on dissensus as much as on consensus
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Recent Examples of dissensus
These dramas of politics — each involving the high court’s first black justice — arrive at a singularly contentious political moment in an atmosphere of angry, sometimes violent dissensus.
—
Manohla Dargis and A.o. Scott, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2017
Manohla Dargis and A.o. Scott, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissensus
Noun
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Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has earned a reputation as a hardliner on immigration, an image that helped propel her to power amid rising nationalist sentiment and debate over Japan’s identity amid demographic decline.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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As in years past, there was plenty of heated debate, some clever campaigning on social media, a last-minute push for votes from A-list significant others and a few races that were neck-and-neck right up until the last ballot was cast.—
Alex Apatoff,
PEOPLE,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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According to him, advances in machine learning have yanked questions once trapped inside theological/philosophical disputations into corporate board packs.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Aug. 2025
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Jake is a single father who has brought Kristen up in the severe Calvinist tradition, marked by Bible disputations of Talmudic intricacy and by a radical detachment from secular and popular culture.—
Richard Brody,
The New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2023
Noun
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Arenas has since said the dispute started over a game of bourré.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
24 Oct. 2025
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The dispute has largely remained peaceful so far.—
Omar S Mahmood,
Time,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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His political director quit the two-month-old campaign, and the candidate apologized — but now Platner is taking a rare, risky approach by leaning into the controversy.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
21 Oct. 2025
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Appointments follow months of policy controversy The appointments mark the next step taken by Sumner County conservatives to pass the controversial policy, which has seen substantial pushback for First Amendment concerns.—
Angele Latham,
Nashville Tennessean,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The dispute could affect billions of dollars in cross-border trade and set a new precedent for handling disagreements over the use of public figures and historic addresses in political messaging.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
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The sentiment is consistent across political party affiliations, with 75% of Republicans, 82% of Independents and 79% of Democrats expressing disagreement.—
Medora Lee,
USA Today,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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As Syria becomes a key zone of geopolitical contestation, Turkey now perceives Israel as a major threat.—
GALIP DALAY,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Oct. 2025
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Barby Rodriguez, the Chief of Staff at the Clerk of Courts and Comptroller, said that as of this morning, the sheriff’s office has filed 1,364 contestations in the statewide E-Filing portal.—
Clara-Sophia Daly,
Miami Herald,
11 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dissensus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissensus. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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