Synonyms of mutiny

mutiny 1 of 2

noun

ˈmyü-tə-nē 

as in revolt

open fighting against authority (as one's own government)

a mutiny led by the ship's cook

Synonyms & Similar Words

• revolt
• insurrection
• uprising
• rebellion
• insurgency
• revolution
• outbreak
• insurgence
• coup
• overthrow
• treachery
• rising
• treason
• sedition
• coup d'état
• sabotage
• subversion
• coup d'etat
• misprision

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• counterinsurgency
• counterrevolution

mutiny

2 of 2

verb

as in to rebel

to rise up against established authority

the party's conservative faction mutinied just before the election

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rebel
• revolt
• kick over the traces
• disobey
• resist
• fight
• mock
• contest
• revolutionize
• combat
• withstand
• oppose
• defy
• buck

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• follow
• comply (with)
• submit
• serve
• obey
• mind
• attend

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun mutiny differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of mutiny are insurrection, rebellion, revolt, revolution, and uprising. While all these words mean "an outbreak against authority," mutiny applies to group insubordination or insurrection especially against naval authority.

a mutiny led by the ship's cook

When could rebellion be used to replace mutiny?

The synonyms rebellion and mutiny are sometimes interchangeable, but rebellion implies an open formidable resistance that is often unsuccessful.

open rebellion against the officers

How do revolt and insurrection relate to one another, in the sense of mutiny?

Both revolt and insurrection imply an armed uprising that quickly fails or succeeds.

a revolt by the Young Turks that surprised party leaders

an insurrection of oppressed laborers

When is it sensible to use revolution instead of mutiny?

While the synonyms revolution and mutiny are close in meaning, revolution applies to a successful rebellion resulting in a major change (as in government).

a political revolution that toppled the monarchy

When can uprising be used instead of mutiny?

Although the words uprising and mutiny have much in common, uprising implies a brief, limited, and often immediately ineffective rebellion.

quickly put down the uprising

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of mutiny

Noun

In the summer of 2023, the mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin mounted a small mutiny, dispatching a convoy of tanks toward Moscow before striking a deal with Putin and, two months later, dying in a plane crash that was almost certainly orchestrated by the Kremlin. —Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 16 July 2025

Along the way, the exhausting voyage involved various mutinies and crew deaths, and upon reaching the islands of the Malayan Archipelago, Magellan’s mind and ambitions changed. —Josh Slater-Williams, IndieWire, 18 May 2025

Verb

French sailors aboard two ships off the Crimean Peninsula mutinied, pulled down the tricolor, ran up the Red flag and then went ashore to join a pro-Bolshevik demonstration. —Thomas E. Ricks, New York Times, 19 May 2024

Jackie Calmes: McCarthy flopped, Gaetz mutinied, but blame the chaos on the entire Republican Party. —Helen Li, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2023