rebel

[ noun adjective reb-uhl; verb ri-bel ]

noun

1. a person who refuses allegiance to, resists, or rises in arms against the government or ruler of their country.

   Synonyms: insurrectionist, insurgent, traitor, mutineer

2. a person who resists any authority, control, or tradition.

adjective

1. rebellious; defiant.

   Synonyms: mutinous, insurgent

2. of or relating to rebels.

verb (used without object)

, re·bel, re·belled, re·bel·ling.

1. to reject, resist, or rise in arms against one's government or ruler.

   Synonyms: mutiny, revolt

2. to resist or rise against some authority, control, or tradition.
3. to show or feel utter repugnance:

   His very soul rebelled at spanking the child.

rebel

verb

1. to resist or rise up against a government or other authority, esp by force of arms
2. to dissent from an accepted moral code or convention of behaviour, dress, etc
3. to show repugnance (towards)

noun

1. 1. a person who rebels
   2. ( as modifier )

      a rebel leader

      a rebel soldier

2. a person who dissents from some accepted moral code or convention of behaviour, dress, etc

Derived Forms

• ˈrebeldom, noun

Other Words From

• rebel·like adjective
• non·rebel noun adjective
• pro·rebel adjective
• semi·rebel noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of rebel¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English adjective rebel(e), from Old French rebelle, from Latin rebellis “renewing a war,” equivalent to re- re- + bell(um) “war” + -is adjective suffix; Middle English verb rebelle(n), from Old French rebeller and Latin rebellāre; noun derivative of the adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rebel¹

C13: from Old French rebelle , from Latin rebellis insurgent, from re- + bellum war

Example Sentences

Or symbols of freedom for someone rebelling against nuptials she wants no part of?

From Los Angeles Times

Under former President Barack Obama, she called for escalating the U.S. war on terror, accusing the president of failing to target extremist rebel factions in Syria.

From Salon

As part of Roberts’ plan to rebel against the uni-party, he called on the incoming administration to fully embrace and enlarge the military-industrial complex.

From Salon

Dr Hook also says that the government taking a tougher stance on smoking might be encouraging people to rebel.

From BBC

"In that sense, he was a rebel. He wanted to paint as it pleased him, not as someone dictated to him."

From BBC

Related Words

• guerrilla
• insurgent
• opponent
• rioter
• secessionist
• separatist

More About Rebel

What does rebel mean?

A rebel is a person who resists or defies rules or norms or rises up against the powers that be.

In its more serious sense, a rebel is a revolutionary trying to overthrow a government. More generally, it means someone who breaks the rules, resists authority, or otherwise challenges the status quo by doing things in a nontraditional way, such as in fashion and other arts. As a noun, rebel is pronounced “REB-uhl.”

Rebel is also a verb meaning to resist or rise up against authority or tradition. As a verb, rebel is pronounced “ri-BELL.”

Example: Danielle refused to wear her uniform to school, fighting with the principle and urging the other girls to rebel against the policy as she did.

Where does rebel come from?

The first records of rebel come from around the 1300s. It is derived from the Latin bell(um), which means “war” and is also the root of war-related words like antebellum, belligerent, and bellicose.

To rebel is to make war against something you disagree with or refuse to conform to. In its most traditional sense, rebel literally means to wage war against a government or other form of rule in order to overthrow it. When multiple people participate in this kind of act, it is called a rebellion. In the American Civil War, the members of the Confederacy who attempted to secede from the Union are called Rebels. In the Star Wars series, the revolutionaries trying to bring down the Empire are known as the Rebel Alliance. 

More generally, a rebel is anyone who challenges the established rules or the way things are. Rebels reject the status quo and instead play by their own rules, regardless of society’s restrictions or expectations. Because rebels are usually (by definition) taking on those who are more powerful, they are often seen as underdogs. They are also often seen as outsiders.

Teenagers who push against the boundaries set by their parents are often described as rebellious (the adjective form of rebel). The 1955 movie Rebel Without a Cause helped to romanticize and popularize the character of the angsty teen rebel, played in the movie by James Dean.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms of rebel?

• rebellious (adjective)
• rebellion (noun)

What are some synonyms for rebel?

• revolutionary
• revolt
• defy
• resist

What are some words that share a root or word element with rebel? 

 

• bellicose
• belligerent
• antebellum

What are some words that often get used in discussing rebel?

 

• revolution
• authority
• rule
• war
• status quo
• resistance
• insurgent
• agitator
• dissenter

How is rebel  used in real life?

Rebel is commonly used to refer to an actual revolutionary trying to overthrow a government. It is also commonly used to refer to anyone intentionally breaking rules that they disagree with. Such rebels are often seen as cool and are usually portrayed that way in popular culture.

Yemen’s government and Houthi rebels are backing UN calls for a ceasefire to help battle coronavirus, according to their respective media outlets.
The Saudi-led coalition and the secessionist Southern Transitional Council have also reportedly welcomed the call.

— BBC Monitoring (@BBCMonitoring) March 26, 2020

From couture to Cardi B: Why fashion rebel Thierry Mugler still grabs headlines https://t.co/chwvB6Hvp1 pic.twitter.com/FJVuxLJ12H

— CNN (@CNN) March 4, 2019

Early-2000’s high school movies gave me the unrealistic expectation that we were all going to be in teen bands and rebel against the system, but here I am with no musical ability and the most rebellious I get is wearing socks and Crocs

— Alex LaGrand (@aelagrand) January 6, 2019

 

 

Try using rebel!

Is rebel used correctly in the following sentence?

He was praised as a rebel for his unquestioning acceptance of the rules.