FIREBRANDS Synonyms: 47 Similar and Opposite Words

firebrands

noun

plural of firebrand

as in rebels

a person who stirs up public feelings especially of discontent a firebrand who urged crowds to riot during the blackouts

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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 firebrands In a moment when voters increasingly reward populist firebrands, Becerra presents as calm, workmanlike, and maybe a little boring. — Ben Paviour august 17, Sacbee.com, 17 Aug. 2026 If the conservative base continues to demand ideological purity, pushing polarizing firebrands into a general election, the result will always be an immediate, lopsided blowout. — Dain Fitzgerald, The Washington Examiner, 1 Aug. 2026 The 2026 midterms are already being shaken up by populist firebrands and antiestablishment outsiders. — James Desio, Washington Post, 15 May 2026 Since arriving on the scene almost a decade ago, the trio have presented themselves as firebrands, ready to stick it to an establishment seeking to strangle the last remnants of 20th century Irish republicanism. — Dean Van Nguyen, Pitchfork, 30 Apr. 2026 An unexpectedly and profoundly unnecessary high price for the incendiary firebrands of the destructive new left. — Bob Ehrlich, Baltimore Sun, 10 Mar. 2026 Ken Paxton and Jasmine Crockett, both firebrands within their respective party primaries, are slated to watch results roll in just a mile apart in central Dallas. — Samantha Ketterer, Houston Chronicle, 3 Mar. 2026 Inmates including Sam Bankman-Fried and Harvey Weinstein have turned to such right-wing firebrands as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens to present alternative narratives to their cases. — Andrew Zucker, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026 In the 1980s, right-wing firebrands such as Jerry Falwell and Anita Bryant claimed that the AIDS epidemic was a plague sent by God to punish gay people. — Hillary Rodham Clinton, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for firebrands

Noun

The rebels recently seized more territory along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz.

— ABC News, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026
The rebels urged their forces to continue fighting and called on Tigrayans to support them.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of rebels

Noun

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez also cited agitators moving between schools to encourage violence.

— Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026
Advertisement As protests intensified, state media unleashed a frenzied smear campaign, casting Egyptian protesters as foreign agents and outside agitators.

— Abdelrahman ElGendy, Time, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of agitators

Noun

Unsheltered intertwined two plots related to the precarity of American life and the danger of demagogues—one set at the dawn of the MAGA era.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
Unsheltered intertwined two plots related to the precarity of American life and the danger of demagogues — one set at the dawn of the MAGA era.

— Sam Worley, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of demagogues

Noun

That could explain why spinning galaxies can be held together without needing an extra source of gravity from dark matter, its proponents have argued.

— Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 14 Oct. 2026
Peptide proponents argue that shoddy manufacturing — not the peptides — causes harm.

— CNN Money, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of proponents

Noun

They’re seen as oligarchs, as the people with wealth and power, controlling our lives—not as outsider insurgents.

— Nicholas Lemann, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026
International sanctions persisted, and PF’s ZANLA and ZIPRA insurgents continued their liberation war.

— Chinatsu Tsuji, Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of insurgents

Noun

Student groups protesting since mid-September through school blockades have urged supporters to join them.

— SYLVIE CORBET, Arkansas Online, 18 Oct. 2026
An hour before a ball was even kicked on Sunday afternoon, the beating of drums and chanting from the River Guard supporters group could be heard loud and clear from the locker rooms at the Boas Soccer Complex.

— Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of supporters

Noun

Two vocal supporters of Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Xavier Becerra filed a formal campaign finance complaint against his rival, Steve Hilton, on Tuesday over the Republican campaign’s use of paid online promoters.

— Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Fears about a future AI apocalypse distract us from its present-day harms — just as its promoters hope.

— Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of promoters

Noun

Feigenbaum offered a more cautious interpretation, describing some of the violent perpetrators as fringe provocateurs who exploit broader demonstrations without necessarily directing them.

— Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026
Hilton’s edgy attitude and pugnacious put-downs would place him right at home among the network’s collection of trolls, provocateurs and Democrat-bashing gargoyles.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of provocateurs

Browse Nearby Words

firebrand

firebrands

fire-breather

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“Firebrands.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/firebrands. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of firebrands

noun

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