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antistate

antistate

9.3
A person or group that is against the state and wants it ended
  • noun
  • /ˈæntiˌsteɪt/
translation icon : actor antistatal
  • Many antistate groups seek to undermine the legitimacy of the government through various forms of activism.
  • antistate actor

Examples

  • Islamic extremism has significantly influenced the behavior of antistate actors in South Asia.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Whether one calls them an antistate actor, a transnational actor, a supranational actor, or a virtual state, the nature of the threat they pose to two nuclear-armed belligerents with disputed borders and histories cannot be overestimated.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Another reason for using the term antistate actor is that nonstate actor implies that the actor is either independent or outside of the state's control.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Thus, the entry of antistate actors makes the situational context vastly different from that of the Cold War era.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Why should we pay greater attention to the role and perspective of antistate actors in our discussion of the stability of nuclear deterrence in South Asia?

    Academic text (2003)
  • In this paper, I focus on the linkage between religious radicalism and nuclear deterrence in South Asia from the perspectives of both state and antistate actors.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Because their ultimate stated objective is to destroy the modern international system—a system based on nation-states—they should, therefore, be described as antistate actors in nature and purpose.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Nonstate or antistate actors have brought nuclear-armed Pakistan and India to the brink of war, which could have escalated to the nuclear level twice since 11 September 2001.

    Academic text (2003)
  • The protest was led by antistate activists who wanted to abolish the current government.

  • During the meeting, the professor discussed how antistate movements can destabilize a nation's authority.

Synonyms

dissident
vsantistate
70 7.5

A person who speaks against the government or its leaders and may be punished

seeks abolition of the state itself rather than criticizing specific policies
antigovernment
vsantistate
1 6.5

A person or group that opposes the government

seeks abolition of the state itself rather than opposing only policies
oppositionist
vsantistate
1 7.4

A person who acts against a government or its rules, like a protester

pushes to end the state's existence rather than only resist policies
antistatist
vsantistate
9.9

Not supporting strong government control

aims to abolish state authority rather than only reject central control

Antonyms

20 8.3

A person who wants the government to control the economy and society

How Opposed

anarchist
76 7.0
antistate
9.3
criticizer
1 3.4
neutral
218 3.6
supporter
817 1.0

Surface Forms

antistate singular
antistates plural

Morphology

antistate = antistate (transparent) = anti + state

The noun is a straightforward conversion from the adjective 'antistate' with no spelling change.

Etymology

Antistate is made of the parts anti- and state, where anti- means 'against', like in antibiotic, and state means 'government'. So an antistate is a person or group that works to challenge or remove government authority.