1
as in discord
a lack of agreement or harmony
considerable dissent within the party's rank and file
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dissention
departure from a generally accepted theory, opinion, or practice
the church reacted to any form of dissent by promptly excommunicating its proponents
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to disagree
to have a different opinion
anyone who dissented was encouraged to speak out while they had the chance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 dissent
Kale Williams, Axios, 12 Mar. 2025
Arresting an immigrant who was a leader in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University has ignited controversy over the U.S. government’s deportation policies and their potential use to stifle dissent.
—Stuart Anderson, Forbes, 11 Mar. 2025
Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Mar. 2025
Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh dissented from the denial.
—Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dissent
Noun
The big picture: Under Portland's old form of government — in which councilors oversaw city bureaus — dissent was often stifled because councilors were hesitant to criticize other bureaus lest their own bureaus come under criticism, said Paul Manson, a political science professor at Portland State.
—Kale Williams, Axios, 12 Mar. 2025
Arresting an immigrant who was a leader in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University has ignited controversy over the U.S. government’s deportation policies and their potential use to stifle dissent.
—Stuart Anderson, Forbes, 11 Mar. 2025
Verb
What To Know Barrett dissented in part to the court majority opinion, and she was joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Mar. 2025
Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh dissented from the denial.
—Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dissent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissent
Noun
-
Beyond the contributions of our honorees, we are all empowered to be peacemakers – to ease the discord and divisiveness in society today.—
Steven P. Dinkin,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Mar. 2025
-
The party is racked by discord over its position on social issues – especially trans rights and, to an only slightly lesser degree, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies.—
Niall Stanage,
The Hill,
15 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
However, one Miami-Dade County resident who saw the film over the weekend at a showing in a differnt Miami-Dade theater, the Coral Gables Art Cinema, disagrees with the mayor's statement.—
Stephanie Valdivia,
USA TODAY,
19 Mar. 2025
-
However, her comments section is now brimming with users agreeing, disagreeing and even naming their own least favorite N.Y.C. influencers.—
Zoey Lyttle,
People.com,
18 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Since the fracking comments, there have been Reddit posts debating the issue, memes galore, and more heresy among Drag Race queens.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
1 Mar. 2024
-
Ambrose’s writings on scripture and heresy, as well as his hymns, had a profound influence on Western Christian theology; since his death, he has been venerated as a saint.—
Joanne M. Pierce,
The Conversation,
28 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
President Rodrigo Chaves Robles of Costa Rica, whose government has historically gone to great lengths to uphold itself as neutral in regional conflicts and strife, also allowed U.S. migrant flights to land in his country.—
Lomi Kriel,
ProPublica,
12 Mar. 2025
-
The 1996 Met was a bit of a Diana 2.0 emergence—by December 1996, her contentious divorce from then-Prince Charles had been finalized for just over three months, following a four-year separation (and plenty of marital strife before that).—
Rachel Burchfield,
Forbes,
8 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
This demand for nonconformity reflects a broader narrative rooted in American history, where risk-taking and resilience have been essential to the nation’s identity.—
Jeetendr Sehdev,
Forbes,
6 Nov. 2024
-
The nonconformity factor produced a surprisingly realistic result.—
Manon Bischoff,
Scientific American,
30 Oct. 2024
Noun
-
After a series of life-jarring moments and resurfaced personal friction, the trio hits a nightclub with their hunky White Lotus resort wellness guru Valentin (Arnas Fedaravičius), who brings along his Russian childhood friends Vlad (Yuri Kolokolnikov) and Aleksei (Julian Kostov).—
Bryan Alexander,
USA TODAY,
17 Mar. 2025
-
Her office’s handling of potential wrongful convictions has also led to friction in courtrooms.—
Madeline Buckley,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
If Trump’s first Presidency was characterized by widespread revolt, his second term has so far been defined by the lack of dissidence.—
Brady Brickner-Wood,
The New Yorker,
5 Feb. 2025
-
Although Iran is brimming with dissidence, no coherent resistance movement has emerged.—
Eric S. Edelman,
Foreign Affairs,
13 Apr. 2020
Noun
-
The Space Force is also interested in responsive launch capabilities, in-orbit refueling, and most recently, offensive weapons that could take out an adversary's satellites during a conflict.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
27 Mar. 2025
-
Though getting increasingly involved in the European conflict in the years before the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, that day officially led the US into World War II, marking the definitive end of traditional isolationism.—
Andrew Latham,
JSTOR Daily,
27 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dissent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissent. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share