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insurrection

insurrection

27 9.1
A planned violent attempt by a group to remove their government
  • noun
  • /ˌɪnsəˈrɛkʃən/
translation icon : insurrección
  • Following a violent uprising, the government declared a state of emergency to quell the insurrection.
  • an armed insurrection
  • a popular insurrection
  • suppress an insurrection

He incited an insurrection and he's running for president.

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Examples

  • Without French military aid, the Irish insurrection of 1798 collapsed.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The President has the authority to use the armed forces to suppress any insurrection, unlawful combination or conspiracy.

  • There is an insurrection going on against the center.

  • Talks of insurrection got folks scared.

  • I refer, of course, to the threat of insurrection.

  • The years pass, and the memory of the insurrection is dissolving.

  • In an insurrection, the end justifies the means.

  • Did the January 6 protesters go to DC to mount an insurrection?

  • Governments toppled through violent insurrection.

  • The constitutional purpose of the state militia was to provide local defense against invasion or insurrection.

    Academic text (2011)

Synonyms

revolution
vsinsurrection
810 4.1

A sudden large change in a country's government or society, often when people rise against leaders

focuses specifically on organized attempts to remove authority, not wider social change
coup
vsinsurrection
  • Literature
622 8.1

A sudden illegal act by a small group to take control of a government

is broader, covering organized attempts by any group to remove existing authority
uprising
vsinsurrection
150 5.1

A group of people who rise up and use force to oppose the government

is broader, covering any organized effort to overthrow power, not only acts
rebellion
vsinsurrection
128 4.1

A group of people who use weapons to fight the government

is the general attempt to remove authority, not only armed resistance
revolt
vsinsurrection
73 4.6

A violent attempt to remove a government or ruler

is the same action but framed more neutrally as an organized overthrow attempt
insurgency
vsinsurrection
  • Literature
54 8.4

A planned action by a group, often using weapons or secret actions, to take control from the government

is the general label for any organized attempt to overthrow authority
rising
vsinsurrection
  • Archaic
6 6.8

An organized attempt by a group to take power from those in charge, often using force

is the fuller term for an organized overthrow effort rather than a single event
insurgence
vsinsurrection
  • Literature
1 8.7

An organized group fighting against the government, often using weapons

is slightly broader, applying to any organized overthrow attempt, not only rebellion
upsurgence
vsinsurrection
9.8

A sudden violent action by people against those in power

is broader, covering both sudden and planned organized attempts to overthrow power

Antonyms

171 5.0

Obeying rules or orders from people in charge

91 2.6

Willing to do what a person in charge asks

57 4.2

Accepting another person's control by obeying them

How Violent

civil war
285 3.2
insurrection
27 9.1
uprising
150 5.1

Surface Forms

insurrection singular
insurrections plural

Morphology

insurrection = insurrect (semi-transparent) = in + surrect + ion

The form shows the visible elements 'in-' and '-ion', but the central combining form 'surrect' is not a productive or familiar English root for most learners, so the relation is only partially obvious.

Etymology

The word insurrection comes from the Latin verb insurgere, which means 'to rise up' and includes in- 'in' and surgere 'to rise'. So an insurrection is people 'rising up' against those in power, which is why it means an organized attempt to overthrow a government.