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Revolution and Revolt
Revolution and revolt have a shared origin, both ultimately going back to the Latin revolvere “to revolve, roll back.” When revolution first appeared in English in the 14th century, it referred to the movement of a celestial body in orbit; that sense was extended to “a progressive motion of a body around an axis,” “completion of a course,” and other senses suggesting regularity of motion or a predictable return to an original position. At virtually the same time, the word developed a sharply different meaning, namely, ”a sudden radical, or complete change,” apparently from the idea of reversal of direction implicit in the Latin verb. Revolt , which initially meant “to renounce allegiance,” grew from the same idea of “rolling back,” in this case from a prior bond of loyalty.
Examples of revolt in a Sentence
Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2025
If an investor on one of the famous reality TV shows for budding entrepreneurs suggested a similar arrangement, audiences would revolt.
—Matt Emma, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 30 Oct. 2025
On top of that, heroes aligning with whoever was cut are in open revolt, potentially refusing to pick up calls or outright walking off the job.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for revolt
Cite this Entry
“Revolt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/revolt. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
revolt
1 of 2 verb
revolt
2 of 2 noun
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