as in rebels
someone who tries to overthrow or undermine a governing power
They were outted as subversives and exiled from the country.
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Recent Examples of subversives
Loners lashing out America has had genuine subversives and left-wing terror networks in the past.
—
Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 27 Sep. 2025
Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 27 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subversives
Noun
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The Romans were masters at using rewards and punishment to manage foreign states, from grants of citizenship to massacres of rebels.—
Barry Strauss,
Time,
21 Oct. 2025
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Currently Colombia’s security forces are facing their biggest threat since the 2016 peace deal with FARC rebels, fighting a slew of powerful armed groups tied to the narcotics trade.—
Alfie Pannell,
Miami Herald,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The best challenger brands think like cultural insurgents.—
Erik Huberman,
Rolling Stone,
10 Oct. 2025
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Islamist insurgents have since May attacked Malian and foreign-owned businesses, including cement factories, sugar factories, and mines.—
Preeti Jha,
semafor.com,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
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At the time, the French people reporting on the ground and from abroad held Dessalines and other Haitian revolutionaries to a different standard.—
Julia Gaffield,
The Conversation,
15 Oct. 2025
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The Mexican actor plays revolutionaries in both season 2 of Star Wars series Andor and new movie musical, Kiss of the Spider Woman.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Notable inmates once held at the jail include Boston Mayor James Michael Curley, anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, civil rights leader Malcolm X and mobster Whitey Bulger, according to records.—
Deirdre Bardolf,
FOXNews.com,
25 Oct. 2025
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Tara could fall into that category, just like the Abbotsfield shooter and the trio of eco-anarchists who are deployed later in the episode.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The high-concept social experiment show, in which a group of strangers work together to uncover the traitors, sorry, werewolves, amongst them, was a breakout hit on Canal+ in France and has already been adapted for ARD’s online service in Germany.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Oct. 2025
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Ross was selected as a murderous game player in the opening episode of the BBC series, working alongside fellow traitors Cat Burns and Alan Carr to hunt down faithfuls.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Subversives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subversives. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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