as in rebellious
given to resisting authority or another's control
the junior officer was court-martialed for being insubordinate
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in rebel
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
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 insubordinate
Eric Todisco, PEOPLE, 13 Dec. 2025
Sean Audy with the Will County sheriff’s office said the defendant also caused trouble at the Will County jail, including threatening a deputy, being insubordinate and uncooperative.
—Michelle Mullins, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025
Respondents said those issues include violent, destructive or insubordinate behavior by the students.
—Rachel Wegner, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Instead, over-centralization has produced the opposite effect, fragmenting the bureaucracy, encouraging bureaucrats to pursue their own interests, and enabling regional elites to become increasingly insubordinate—with Ramzan Kadyrov, Putin’s strongman in Chechnya, being the prime example.
—Alexander J. Motyl, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2016
See All Example Sentences for insubordinate
Adjective
Meanwhile, Monica is having work troubles at her new job as head chef at Allesandro's restaurant involving an insubordinate kitchen staff, and Phoebe sets out to write a Christmas song for her friends but struggles with rhymes.
—Eric Todisco, PEOPLE, 13 Dec. 2025
Sean Audy with the Will County sheriff’s office said the defendant also caused trouble at the Will County jail, including threatening a deputy, being insubordinate and uncooperative.
—Michelle Mullins, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025
Respondents said those issues include violent, destructive or insubordinate behavior by the students.
—Rachel Wegner, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Instead, over-centralization has produced the opposite effect, fragmenting the bureaucracy, encouraging bureaucrats to pursue their own interests, and enabling regional elites to become increasingly insubordinate—with Ramzan Kadyrov, Putin’s strongman in Chechnya, being the prime example.
—Alexander J. Motyl, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2016
See All Example Sentences for insubordinate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insubordinate
Adjective
-
This rebellious attitude defines the world she’s built, and it’s reflected in the girl who wears it.—
Daisy Maldonado,
InStyle,
21 Feb. 2026
-
That trombone of yours, with its rebellious and unique sound, forever changed the history of our Latin music.—
Andrea Flores,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
In 2024, the Kremlin was forced to evacuate and grant asylum to its Syrian ally, Bashar al-Assad, as he was toppled by rebel forces.—
Matthew Chance,
CNN Money,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Only a few of her captors speak French, so most of her days are spent nonverbally (and Depardon reinforces the isolation by not subtitling the rebels’ dialogue in their native language).—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
If some of the Penguins were upset by the news, Rust was simply defiant.—
Josh Yohe,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2026
-
In recent days, the president has remained defiant on the issue, lashing out at the justices for delivering a legal setback on his tariffs, and looking to impose new global tariffs in a different way.—
Ana Ceballos
Follow,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Her move caps a remarkable two years for the insurgent right-wing party, rebranded from Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party, which has led every opinion poll for the past 10 months and is widely seen as a serious contender to form the next government.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
24 Feb. 2026
-
If enough Boca Raton voters are fed up with this ugly trend — and strong signs show an anti-incumbent backlash in the city — the insurgent Liebelson could win.—
Steve Bousquet,
Sun Sentinel,
21 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The 39-0 Gutierrez, has won two straight state titles, but will face a tough challenger in Dean, just a freshman.—
Nate Peterson,
Denver Post,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Season 42 continues on Thursday with Andrew He returning as champion to face two new challengers.—
USA TODAY Staff,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Tanimoto, as the last living Block 42 resister, carries a singular piece of that history — a controversy and act of resistance within the walls of confinement that illustrated the dilemma faced by people imprisoned by their own country without accusation of a crime.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Sherrill focused many of her critiques on ICE and Trump’s immigration policies, positioning the state as a major resister of Trump’s deportation plans.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Or an historian of Polynesian culture giving a lecture about tattooing, or the time Captain Bligh stopped on the atoll to look for the mutineer Fletcher Christian.—
Antonia Quirke,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 Jan. 2026
-
Language purists like to remind anyone who will listen that decimation actually means the slaughter of one in ten people, and was the military punishment wielded by the Roman army against deserters and mutineers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The uniform of the conformist — sports shirt, cardigan, tennis shoes — is as easily recognized as that of the recusant — dirty white T, sideburns, two days’ growth of beard.—
Chris Jones,
chicagotribune.com,
15 July 2019
Cite this Entry
“Insubordinate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insubordinate. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
