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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 radicals
Wood argues that colleges are not only staffed with a disproportionate number of radicals who indoctrinate the students but also have turned everything from dormitory management to the dining halls over to the left.
—
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 17 Feb. 2026
Father Ed and Bishop Rob Hirschfeld aren’t political radicals.
—Ernesto Burden, Washington Post, 9 Feb. 2026
She was abducted from UC Berkeley by a small cadre of Bay Area militant radicals, who demanded her family pay to feed the poor en masse.
—Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026
Then the Department of Justice ordered federal prosecutors and the FBI to investigate Good’s family for ties to left-wing radicals, leading several prosecutors to resign.
—The Atlantic, 26 Jan. 2026
The problem is the unhinged reaction to ICE’s presence by leftist radicals who have a lot in common with your average anarchist.
—Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 22 Jan. 2026
Code Pink is a bunch of insane radicals and someone could have gotten hurt.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Jan. 2026
But a tragedy that falls on this woman and all of the radicals who teach people that immigration is the one type of law that rioters are allowed to interfere with.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 9 Jan. 2026
But a tragedy that falls on this woman and all of the radicals who teach people that immigration is the one type of law that rioters are allowed to interfere with.
—Greta Bjornson, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 17 Feb. 2026
Father Ed and Bishop Rob Hirschfeld aren’t political radicals.
—Ernesto Burden, Washington Post, 9 Feb. 2026
She was abducted from UC Berkeley by a small cadre of Bay Area militant radicals, who demanded her family pay to feed the poor en masse.
—Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026
Then the Department of Justice ordered federal prosecutors and the FBI to investigate Good’s family for ties to left-wing radicals, leading several prosecutors to resign.
—The Atlantic, 26 Jan. 2026
The problem is the unhinged reaction to ICE’s presence by leftist radicals who have a lot in common with your average anarchist.
—Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 22 Jan. 2026
Code Pink is a bunch of insane radicals and someone could have gotten hurt.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Jan. 2026
But a tragedy that falls on this woman and all of the radicals who teach people that immigration is the one type of law that rioters are allowed to interfere with.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 9 Jan. 2026
But a tragedy that falls on this woman and all of the radicals who teach people that immigration is the one type of law that rioters are allowed to interfere with.
—Greta Bjornson, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for radicals
Noun
-
Wonder women in American history Who were most transformative female organizers, creators, activists, innovators, revolutionaries and trailblazers in American history?—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
13 Feb. 2026
-
With that mental reframing, the American (and then French and other) revolutionaries changed not just their own country, but the world.—
Andreas Kluth,
Mercury News,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
During the battles against IS, thousands of extremists and tens of thousands of women and children linked to them were taken to detention camps.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Feb. 2026
-
That was Sokolowski’s introduction to a network of sadistic online extremists.—
Curt Devine,
CNN Money,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Radicals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/radicals. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
