1
as in discord
a lack of agreement or harmony
considerable dissent within the party's rank and file
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dissidence
departure from a generally accepted theory, opinion, or practice
the church reacted to any form of dissent by promptly excommunicating its proponents
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to disagree
to have a different opinion
anyone who dissented was encouraged to speak out while they had the chance
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dissent
Stephy Chung, CNN Money, 22 Jan. 2026
The language in the memorandum affirms legitimate counterterrorism work while leaving room to treat political dissent as out of bounds.
—Stephanie A, The Conversation, 22 Jan. 2026
Andrea Hsu, NPR, 22 Jan. 2026
Expert consensus is necessary to make sound decisions based on science and evidence, but that doesn’t mean experts must abstain from politics or refrain from expressing dissenting opinions.
—Micah Altman, The Conversation, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dissent
Noun
Such pieces came at a time when – in the years after the 2008 Beijing Olympics – officials carefully projected a new era of Chinese development and aggressively cracked down on any dissent.
—Stephy Chung, CNN Money, 22 Jan. 2026
The language in the memorandum affirms legitimate counterterrorism work while leaving room to treat political dissent as out of bounds.
—Stephanie A, The Conversation, 22 Jan. 2026
Verb
The dissenting vote came from Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal.
—Andrea Hsu, NPR, 22 Jan. 2026
Expert consensus is necessary to make sound decisions based on science and evidence, but that doesn’t mean experts must abstain from politics or refrain from expressing dissenting opinions.
—Micah Altman, The Conversation, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dissent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissent
Noun
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The discord surrounding the bill compounds headwinds facing the crypto industry during a rough few months that have seen prices fall significantly.—
Carlos Garcia,
Fortune,
27 Jan. 2026
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Though the series has been a hit for Netflix and made stars of its cast, rumors of tension, conflict, and discord have followed the cast.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The dissidence of Minneapolis reminds me of the Argentinian mothers who found themselves in an impossible situation during the military junta of the late 1970s.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
30 Jan. 2026
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And dissidence and utopianism, new ways of life, other—othered—ethnicities, and hybrid identities were universally amenable.—
Diedrich Diederichsen,
Artforum,
1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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What’s truly alarming isn’t that people disagree on these cases.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
31 Jan. 2026
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According to court filings, Rick Sternfeld, Delcid’s attorney, argued in court for a mistrial because of the disclosure, but the judge disagreed.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Prices for precious metals have been soaring as investors look for safer places to park their money amid threats of tariffs, still-high inflation, political strife and mountains of debt for governments worldwide.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 Jan. 2026
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Prices for precious metals have been soaring as investors look for safer places to park their money amid threats of tariffs, still-high inflation, political strife and mountains of debt for governments worldwide.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Any challenge to gun rights was immediate heresy, disqualifying in any measure.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
26 Jan. 2026
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When something is so embedded in our routines, even a small shift can feel like heresy.—
Alexander Puutio,
Forbes.com,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
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With its family friction and its outsiders’ view of a fast-growing city in a young, postwar country, Shame and Money casts a piercing, sorrowful gaze at the ground-level effects of globalization.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Jan. 2026
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Senator Thom Tillis has pledged to block Fed nominations until the Justice Department drops its Powell investigation—creating immediate friction.—
Güney Yıldız,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Similarly, the emphasis on independence and nonconformity reflects what psychologists call autonomy orientation.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
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The gender nonconformity of the protagonists—all thinly disguised versions of Lee—is often obvious but never explicitly mentioned.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Experts say several factors have driven the sharp rise over the past year, including persistent concerns about inflation, ongoing global conflicts, and the possibility of interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.—
Brady Halbleib,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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This was in direct conflict with the Hatch Act, which restricts federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dissent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissent. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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