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rabble-rouser

noun

ˈra-bəl-ˌrau̇-zər How to pronounce rabble-rouser (audio)
Definition of rabble-rousernext
as in rebel
a person who stirs up public feelings especially of discontent rabble-rousers inciting hungry people in breadlines to demand social justice

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 rabble-rouser Bryce Young makes the placid Brock Purdy look like a rabble-rouser at the podium. — Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 22 Nov. 2025 There are also rabble-rousers at the site, yelling expletives as heavily armed federal officers survey them on the sidewalk from a perch up on the roof. — Suzette Hackney, USA Today, 17 Oct. 2025 Most of these commentators, influencers, and rabble-rousers operate outside the mainstream-media spotlight, yet their influence is vast, shaping how the next generation thinks about race, gender, government, and truth itself. — Clara Molot, Air Mail, 20 Sep. 2025 But the hard-right caucus, typically the House rabble-rousers and thorns in Johnson’s side, are all-in on the rescissions package as vocal supporters of DOGE. — Rachel Schilke, The Washington Examiner, 12 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for rabble-rouser
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rabble-rouser
  1. rebel
  2. firebrand
  3. agitator
  4. demagogue
  5. promoter
  6. proponent
  7. provocateur
  8. supporter
Noun
  • As Houthi rebels closed in, Eshraq Abdel Gelil and her husband fled their home, walking through the mountains before catching a ride to a nearby city.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Saudi Arabia struggles to rally support With the world’s biggest oil exporter under fire from rebels backed by the Saudis’ regional adversary, the kingdom needs a safe outlet for its crude as well as military assistance.
    — Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of rebel
Noun
  • Their manager has not been the firebrand from the University of Tennessee that everyone expected.
    — Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The independent, nonpartisan survey by EPIC-MRA of Lansing shows El-Sayed, the former director of Detroit and Wayne County's health departments and progressive firebrand, leading Rogers 47%-43% with 10% undecided.
    — Todd Spangler, Freep.com, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of firebrand
Noun
  • Among the agitators were the workers at Sytin’s Moscow publishing house.
    — James Folta, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
  • In Portsmouth, a group of far-right agitators first attempted to stop lifeboats from bringing the migrants onshore before seeking to block buses from taking the asylum seekers to a processing facility.
    — Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of agitator
Noun
  • This included understanding the history of democratic ideas and practical governance, as well as the need to protect minority groups and the dangers posed by demagogues.
    — Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 1 Sep. 2026
  • In recent years, totalizing ideologies such as communism, fascism, and Islamism have found dedicated audiences on social media, and the proliferation of demagogues manipulating people for malign ends is an ever-present worry.
    — James Kirchick, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of demagogue
Noun
  • Puth’s representatives and the tour’s promoter have not publicly provided further details about the cancellation.
    — Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 19 Sep. 2026
  • While promoters and venues wield great power over concert tours, experts say an artist of Sheeran's magnitude generally has the final say about what happens concerning the shows.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of promoter
Noun
  • School choice proponents often say the rapid increase in participation only shows the enormous demand for such programs.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Sep. 2026
  • By contrast, modern proponents of the existence of a ninth planet focus their searches further out, looking instead to orbital peculiarities in smaller objects that occupy the distant reaches of the solar system.
    — Micah Hanks, Space.com, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of proponent
Noun
  • Linnetz relishes in his identity as a provocateur, a detail about him which has, in fact, produced more viral moments in five years than most people have in their entire career as a designer.
    — Julissa James, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026
  • As social media evolved, Kiffin innovated, without regret, as the sport’s biggest poster and provocateur.
    — Matt Baker, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of provocateur
Noun
  • Some of the nations attending the meeting in western Ukraine's Ivano-Frankivsk region, such as Poland and Romania, have been staunch supporters of Ukraine.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Some of the nations attending the meeting in western Ukraine’s Ivano-Frankivsk region, such as Poland and Romania, have been staunch supporters of Ukraine.
    — Samya Kullab, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of supporter

Browse Nearby Words

rabblement
rabble-rouser
rabble-rousers
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rabble-rouser.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rabble-rouser. Accessed 21 Sep. 2026.

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