as in rebels
a person who rises up against authority
the government subjected the insurgents to the most inhuman torture imaginable
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Recent Examples of insurgents
To Alfredo De Avila, of the Oakland Center for Third World Organizing, the UFW’s claims that Communist insurgents are plotting against Chavez and his union highlight how far the UFW has fallen.
—
Marcos Breton, Sacbee.com, 24 Mar. 2026
Bakri is more brittle in Farah Nabulsi’s The Teacher as Basem, a Palestinian teacher in the West Bank whose support for insurgents grows after his own son dies in prison and as Israeli settlers brutalize his neighborhood.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
When Sahelian countries tried to talk to their insurgents, France fiercely opposed it.
—Obi Anyadike, semafor.com, 23 Mar. 2026
That kind of chaos could easily spill over Iran’s borders, and not just by land; the Persian Gulf is narrow, and would not pose much of an obstacle to terrorists or insurgents who cross it in speedboats.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Paxton will counter that Texas runoffs often reward insurgents.
—Gromer Jeffers Jr, Dallas Morning News, 4 Mar. 2026
After Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, the new theocracy also battled Kurdish insurgents.
—ABC News, 4 Mar. 2026
At least 169 people were killed after insurgents raided a village in a remote area of South Sudan, a local official said Monday.
—Arkansas Online, 3 Mar. 2026
At least 169 people were killed after insurgents raided a village in a remote area of South Sudan, a local official said Monday.
—CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026
Marcos Breton, Sacbee.com, 24 Mar. 2026
Bakri is more brittle in Farah Nabulsi’s The Teacher as Basem, a Palestinian teacher in the West Bank whose support for insurgents grows after his own son dies in prison and as Israeli settlers brutalize his neighborhood.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
When Sahelian countries tried to talk to their insurgents, France fiercely opposed it.
—Obi Anyadike, semafor.com, 23 Mar. 2026
That kind of chaos could easily spill over Iran’s borders, and not just by land; the Persian Gulf is narrow, and would not pose much of an obstacle to terrorists or insurgents who cross it in speedboats.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Paxton will counter that Texas runoffs often reward insurgents.
—Gromer Jeffers Jr, Dallas Morning News, 4 Mar. 2026
After Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, the new theocracy also battled Kurdish insurgents.
—ABC News, 4 Mar. 2026
At least 169 people were killed after insurgents raided a village in a remote area of South Sudan, a local official said Monday.
—Arkansas Online, 3 Mar. 2026
At least 169 people were killed after insurgents raided a village in a remote area of South Sudan, a local official said Monday.
—CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insurgents
Noun
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Conflict has broken out in the country since 2013 after mostly Muslim rebels seized power and forced then President François Bozizé to quit.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
30 Mar. 2026
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The mixed movements followed a whirlwind of action in the war over the weekend, including an entry into the fighting by Houthi rebels in Yemen.—
Stan Choe,
Fortune,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The game happened to be on November 18th, the anniversary of Haitian revolutionaries defeating the French Army in 1803 before declaring independence.—
Albert Samaha,
New Yorker,
31 Mar. 2026
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Until the 1950s, its inmates were Vietnamese revolutionaries – or anyone deemed to be such – and conditions were truly horrendous.—
Tamara Hinson,
Condé Nast Traveler,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Insurgents.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insurgents. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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