as in revolutionaries
a person who favors rapid and sweeping changes especially in laws and methods of government
radicals staged large, violent protests in the hopes of toppling the government
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Recent Examples of radicals
In the North, the Republicans were split between moderates and radicals, while the Democrats were split between loyal Unionists and conservatives who preferred peace to a bloody war that pivoted on abolition.
—
Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 May 2026
The data shows that the veterans are actually the radicals.
—Alex Kalinauckas, New York Times, 22 May 2026
Schlöndorff sympathized with the anger driving the student movements of the time and pushed back against those condemning the radicals, including German left-wing terrorist group the Red Army Faction, who were using violence to achieve political ends.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2026
To its members, Latin America’s leaders weren’t revolutionary peers but swarthy radicals.
—Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
By using multiple pulses in a sequence, chemists can study additional properties of radicals that are difficult to see with continuous-wave EPR, says Sideris, who recently moved to Stanford University.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 Apr. 2026
Researchers from Japan have developed biocompatible molecular quantum nanosensors (MoQNs) that can measure temperature and detect chemical radicals inside living cells with unprecedented precision.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Apr. 2026
The anti-imperialist upsurge of the 1920s and ’30s was formative for a generation of Latin American radicals.
—Tony Wood, The Conversation, 17 Apr. 2026
For every cultural good, identity has become fused with the object of interest, turning previously normal people leading unremarkable lives into Steak ’n Shake beef-tallow purists, Harry Potter moralists, or cast-iron-pan-cleaning radicals.
—Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 31 Mar. 2026
Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 May 2026
The data shows that the veterans are actually the radicals.
—Alex Kalinauckas, New York Times, 22 May 2026
Schlöndorff sympathized with the anger driving the student movements of the time and pushed back against those condemning the radicals, including German left-wing terrorist group the Red Army Faction, who were using violence to achieve political ends.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2026
To its members, Latin America’s leaders weren’t revolutionary peers but swarthy radicals.
—Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
By using multiple pulses in a sequence, chemists can study additional properties of radicals that are difficult to see with continuous-wave EPR, says Sideris, who recently moved to Stanford University.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 Apr. 2026
Researchers from Japan have developed biocompatible molecular quantum nanosensors (MoQNs) that can measure temperature and detect chemical radicals inside living cells with unprecedented precision.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Apr. 2026
The anti-imperialist upsurge of the 1920s and ’30s was formative for a generation of Latin American radicals.
—Tony Wood, The Conversation, 17 Apr. 2026
For every cultural good, identity has become fused with the object of interest, turning previously normal people leading unremarkable lives into Steak ’n Shake beef-tallow purists, Harry Potter moralists, or cast-iron-pan-cleaning radicals.
—Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 31 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for radicals
Noun
-
Witnessing the revolutionaries’ painful efforts to implement the seemingly straightforward principles of their Declaration of Rights reminds us that the struggle for justice is never a simple one.—
Jeremy D. Popkin,
The Conversation,
28 May 2026
-
Perpetual identification with revolutionaries isn't great for the nation's political health.—
Evan Gottesman,
Washington Post,
25 May 2026
Noun
-
And when Khomeini broke that promise, my father was one of the first to stand up to him and the extremists who hijacked that revolution.—
Letters to the Editor,
Washington Post,
2 June 2026
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But Raman’s walked quite the tightrope of being a DSA’er who talks like a back-to-basics liberal while also hanging out with left-wing extremists like Hasan Piker.—
Sal Rodriguez,
Daily News,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Radicals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/radicals. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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