CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE Synonyms: 50 Similar and Opposite Words

civil disobedience

noun

as in rebellion

refusal to obey laws as a way of forcing the government to do or change something In an act of civil disobedience, the family sent its tax money to an antiwar organization. A student organization is encouraging civil disobedience as a way to get the university to change its policies.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 civil disobedience The artist and activist has used performance art to challenge the government and advocate for civil liberties using the Cuban flag, demonstrations, and acts of civil disobedience. — News Desk, Artforum, 21 July 2026 As a founder of the San Isidro Movement, Otero Alcántara used performance art to challenge the Cuban government, repeatedly provoking authorities through works involving the national flag, public demonstrations and acts of civil disobedience. — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 20 July 2026 In 1952 he was convicted for his role in a civil disobedience campaign and received a nine-month sentence of hard labor (suspended for two years). — Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 June 2026 Since then, photos and videos from the act of civil disobedience have spread widely across social media — amplified by others who share a similar frustration and unease about the country's military action. — Juliana Kim, NPR, 24 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for civil disobedience

Recent Examples of Synonyms for civil disobedience

Noun

Within 36 hours one of the prisoners had an apparent mental breakdown, and on the second day the inmates staged a rebellion.

— Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 21 Oct. 2026
In their utopian reconstruction of a mythic past, the Agrarians’ polemics failed to mention the South’s legacies of slavery and rebellion.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of rebellion

Noun

This hint of connection between them is later made concrete when, at the demonstration, the two are complicit in an act of defiance — throwing a cobblestone at a policeman, badly injuring him — and must skip town for the night.

— Guy Lodge, Variety, 27 Oct. 2026
These behaviors can be signals of distress but may be mistaken for defiance.

— Jermaine F. Williams, Baltimore Sun, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of defiance

Noun

The former staffers’ attorneys tried to force her to testify in this week’s trial against Basabe, and plaintiffs have pointed to her noncooperation as evidence of the alleged House cover-up of Basabe’s actions and silencing of potential witnesses.

— Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 17 July 2026
The Department of Homeland Security as well as administration officials have largely defended its agents and tied the shootings to a rise in vehicle assaults and noncooperation fueled by the rhetoric of Democratic officials.

— Christopher Cann, USA Today, 17 July 2026

Definition of noncooperation

Browse Nearby Words

civil courts

civil disobedience

civilian

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Civil disobedience.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/civil%20disobedience. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of civil disobedience

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on civil disobedience

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

shindig

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes