OPPOSITIONIST Synonyms: 28 Similar and Opposite Words

oppositionist

noun

Definition of oppositionist

as in challenger

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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 oppositionist Yesterday, in an effort to galvanize democratic forces, oppositionists announced the foundation of the Strategic Council of Republicans Inside Iran. — Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2026 Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is a Sunni Islamist umbrella group of oppositionist forces with ideological and organizational roots in al-Qaeda. — Joseph Epstein, Newsweek, 10 Dec. 2024 Within Russia, the oppositionists’ challenges are far greater. — Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 18 Sep. 2024 Characteristically, Navalny tried to buck up his fellow oppositionists. — The Editors, National Review, 16 Feb. 2024

Recent Examples of Synonyms for oppositionist

Noun

Democrat Wes Moore won reelection as Maryland's governor after defeating Republican challenger Dan Cox, CBS News projected Tuesday.

— CBS Baltimore, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna defeated challenger and former Sheriff Alex Villanueva by a wide margin in his bid for reelection Tuesday, with the Associated Press calling the race Tuesday night for the incumbent.

— Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026

Definition of challenger

Noun

Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry rejected similar Sudanese accusations in a May 5 statement, calling them baseless, and accused Sudan of supporting rebels in its northern Tigray region.

— ABC News, ABC News, 4 Nov. 2026
In Colombia’s rural Guaviare region, poor ranchers eke out a living in obscurity, surrounded by armed rebels who traffic cocaine.

— New York Times, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of rebel

Noun

The Republican reckoning tests a party infrastructure reshaped around the president since his insurgent rise in 2015 transformed the GOP.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2026
Will the Democrats have to contend with left-wing insurgents like Republicans did the Tea Party?

— Brian Steinberg, Variety, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of insurgent

Noun

In November 1971, Berkeley, California, became the first sanctuary city in the country when 12 local churches inspired the City Council to pass a resolution offering sanctuary to draft resisters.

— Menika Dirkson, The Conversation, 8 Apr. 2026
Clemson resister Dabo Swinney has driven his program into the ground.

— Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026

Definition of resister

Noun

As the head of China’s Nationalist government, Chiang and his party were trying to establish control in a nation divided among revolutionists, nationalists, Indigenous warlords, and a developing communist army and government.

— Susan Tate Ankeny, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Apr. 2024
Many revolutionists see heavy tank casualties in Ukraine as the key indicator for the tank’s looming obsolescence in the face of newly lethal precision antitank weapons.

— Stephen Biddle, Foreign Affairs, 10 Aug. 2023

Definition of revolutionist

Noun

Political dissent spurred these efforts, as in the case of the activist and anarchist Emma Goldman.

— Rozina Ali, New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2026
The situation on the ground is unpredictable because the students, communists, anarchists, anti-Israel and other protesters that have collaborated to make France a worse place to visit in recent days might do something no one expects.

— Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of anarchist

Noun

Mao Zedong was a revolutionary who led the Communist Party during its crucial early days, winning a civil war against the ruling Nationalist Party in China, and then founding the modern-day People’s Republic of China.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026
Like his fellow revolutionaries, Jefferson recoiled from such aspects of empire, past and present.

— Jackson Lears, Harpers Magazine, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of revolutionary

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“Oppositionist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oppositionist. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of oppositionist

noun

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