oppositionist

noun

Definition of oppositionistnext
as in challenger

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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 oppositionist Yesterday, in an effort to galvanize democratic forces, oppositionists announced the foundation of the Strategic Council of Republicans Inside Iran. — Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2026 Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is a Sunni Islamist umbrella group of oppositionist forces with ideological and organizational roots in al-Qaeda. — Joseph Epstein, Newsweek, 10 Dec. 2024 Within Russia, the oppositionists’ challenges are far greater. — Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 18 Sep. 2024 Characteristically, Navalny tried to buck up his fellow oppositionists. — The Editors, National Review, 16 Feb. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oppositionist
  1. challenger
  2. rebel
  3. insurgent
  4. resister
  5. recusant
  6. revolutionist
  7. anarchist
  8. revolutionary
Noun
  • Bound for Glory pay-per-view to answer Moose’s open challenger.
    — Ryan Gaydos OutKick, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The government’s refusal to make public key agreements related to the refinery has been criticized by opposition leaders, including one of Ruto’s main challengers, Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna.
    — Martin K.N Siele, semafor.com, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of challenger
Noun
  • The latest conflict between the Saudis and the Houthis began last month after the rebels seized key areas along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical waterway for oil shipments.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The latest conflict between the Saudis and the Houthis began last month after the rebels seized key areas along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical waterway for Gulf oil shipments.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of rebel
Noun
  • Raman, who now occupies the insurgent role in the race, seemed to see the fires less as an indictment of the system than of Bass.
    — Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Rwanda has acknowledged defensive “security coordinationâ€� with the M23 insurgents, who have held large swaths of mineral-rich eastern DR Congo for more than a year.
    — Ruben Nyanguila, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of insurgent
Noun
  • In November 1971, Berkeley, California, became the first sanctuary city in the country when 12 local churches inspired the City Council to pass a resolution offering sanctuary to draft resisters.
    — Menika Dirkson, The Conversation, 8 Apr. 2026
  • Clemson resister Dabo Swinney has driven his program into the ground.
    — Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
Definition of resister
Noun
  • The uniform of the conformist — sports shirt, cardigan, tennis shoes — is as easily recognized as that of the recusant — dirty white T, sideburns, two days’ growth of beard.
    — Chris Jones, chicagotribune.com, 15 July 2019
Definition of recusant
Noun
  • As the head of China’s Nationalist government, Chiang and his party were trying to establish control in a nation divided among revolutionists, nationalists, Indigenous warlords, and a developing communist army and government.
    — Susan Tate Ankeny, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Apr. 2024
  • Many revolutionists see heavy tank casualties in Ukraine as the key indicator for the tank’s looming obsolescence in the face of newly lethal precision antitank weapons.
    — Stephen Biddle, Foreign Affairs, 10 Aug. 2023
Definition of revolutionist
Noun
  • The effects of these publications were hardly only theoretical, as Italian anarchists exerted a powerful influence on labor strikes.
    — Ed Simon, JSTOR Daily, 7 Oct. 2026
  • There are groups of radical environmentalists and anarchists who embrace him, and Luigi Mangione gave the Unabomber Manifesto a four-star review on Goodreads.
    — Rachel Corbett, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of anarchist
Noun
  • The great innovator of fashion photography, the revolutionary, was also a strict traditionalist.
    — Vince Aletti, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2026
  • Chambers is a trust-fund revolutionary with unusually deep pockets.
    — Rich Cohen, Air Mail, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of revolutionary

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Cite this Entry

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

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