secessionist

as in rebel
a person who thinks that a nation, state, etc., should separate from another and become independent A growing group of secessionists are pushing for the independence of the region.

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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 secessionist An Austrian secessionist painted iron center table by Thonet stands atop a circa 1900 Russian Bessarabian wool rug in the two-story entrance hall. David Foxley, Architectural Digest, 20 Mar. 2025 According to researchers at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a think tank in Washington, D.C., these secessionist movements have gained support from Russian accounts on social media. Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025 The base was originally named for Lt. Gen. Henry Benning, a Confederate general and Southern secessionist who opposed freeing slaves. Eleanor Watson, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2025 Monuments to old secessionists and segregationists had fallen across the country. Charles King, Foreign Affairs, 18 June 2021 See All Example Sentences for secessionist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for secessionist
Noun
  • Set in a crumbling Japanese metropolis rebuilt after a devastating explosion, Akira follows teenage rebels Kaneda and Tetsuo as secret government experiments unleash psychic forces capable of unmaking the world.
    Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 21 May 2025
  • In response, the commanders decide to meet in Washington D.C., and Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) finally chooses a side once and for all and gives up their plan to June (Elisabeth Moss) and the fellow rebels.
    EW.com, EW.com, 20 May 2025
Noun
  • Related article Kurdish separatist leader calls on followers to disarm, potentially ending a five-decade insurgency with Turkey In March, the PKK declared an immediate ceasefire after Ocalan called on fighters to lay down their arms and dissolve the group.
    Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 12 May 2025
  • The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a militant separatist group, has claimed responsibility for the attack.
    Asim Khan, Saleem Mehsud and Sophia Saifi, CNN, 11 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • For decades, the Philippine armed forces battled insurgents in the southern reaches of the archipelago.
    ELY RATNER, Foreign Affairs, 27 May 2025
  • The insurgents have become the establishment, and the purpose of the establishment is always to protect itself.
    Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 23 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Secessionist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/secessionist. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.

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