as in dissenting
deviating from commonly accepted beliefs or practices
dissident elements within the Catholic Church
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dissenter
a person who believes, teaches, or advocates something opposed to accepted beliefs
the conference drew political dissidents of every ilk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 dissident
CBS News, 23 Apr. 2026
Performance artist Otero Alcántara and Grammy winner Maykel Castillo, a rapper known as Maykel Osorbo, created the dissident group San Isidro Movement and have been in prison for joining the antigovernment protests on July 11, 2021.
—Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 20 Apr. 2026
Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Russian dissident Leonid Volkov reported receiving one of the phishing emails.
—Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dissident
Adjective
Authorities said Topo had ties to a dissident faction of Colombia's FARC guerillas and was wanted by a New York court.
—CBS News, 23 Apr. 2026
Performance artist Otero Alcántara and Grammy winner Maykel Castillo, a rapper known as Maykel Osorbo, created the dissident group San Isidro Movement and have been in prison for joining the antigovernment protests on July 11, 2021.
—Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 20 Apr. 2026
Noun
Shailin and her siblings come from a family of dissidents who have long hoped to see the government fall.
—Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Russian dissident Leonid Volkov reported receiving one of the phishing emails.
—Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dissident
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissident
Adjective
-
Board member Renee Paschall cast the lone dissenting vote on the final package.—
Elizabeth Sander,
San Antonio Express-News,
19 Aug. 2022
-
The document runs to more than a hundred and fifty pages, and for each question there are affirmative and dissenting studies, as well as some that indicate mixed results.—
The New Yorker,
The New Yorker,
3 June 2022
Noun
-
That ubiquity created ample opportunity for a poststructural dissenter to come along.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Examples include dissenters citing anti-war sentiments or disapproval of the government’s handling of the Epstein files.—
Maximilian Brichta,
The Conversation,
22 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Accessories are getting more unconventional, too.—
Lauren Fisher,
Footwear News,
1 May 2026
-
In sharp contrast to the region’s traditional stone dwellings, the experimental concrete home—designed in his mid-20s with collaborators Roland Baltera and François Seigneur—stands out for its angular, unconventional form.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
To distinguish itself from all the other renegade action shows out there, showrunner Kyle Killen echoes his project’s cinematic predecessor, albeit with hollow results.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
30 Apr. 2026
-
The film stars renegade country singer Elizabeth Cook as a fictionalized version of herself, portraying an artist navigating midlife while contending with an industry that has never fully embraced her.—
Kennedy French,
Variety,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The design was by aviation legend Burt Rutan, known for his bold and often maverick creations.—
Jacopo Prisco,
CNN,
27 Jan. 2023
-
Sinema has modeled her political approach on the maverick style of the late Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, who alienated the grassroots of his party by sometimes crossing the aisle to work with Democrats.—
Time,
Time,
23 Jan. 2023
Adjective
-
When personal finance tips resonate with a viewers’ values, everyday financial decision-making can become colored with politics and nonconformist sentiments.—
Maximilian Brichta,
The Conversation,
22 Apr. 2026
-
With nonconformist narration and characteristic whimsy, her work offers us a space to wonder and reflect in a fraught time.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Massie’s campaign had erected a large tent there, in anticipation that a big crowd would flock to hear perhaps the most outspoken and iconoclastic Republican in Congress.—
Joshua Green,
Bloomberg,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Phillippe, who has a multi-year deal, will star as a brilliant, iconoclastic detective who moves to Nashville from New York.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Drunkenness, like madness, protects the messengers of heretical truth from disbelief, disdain, and retaliation.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Feb. 2026
-
This heretical policy gets some support from yet another rigid convention, that of credits, which separates directors from screenwriters.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dissident.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissident. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
