Rebel

How to spell rebel

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce rebel

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does rebel mean?

1. nounA person who resists or rises up against authority, control, or convention.
2. verbTo resist or rise up against an authority, control, or established norm.

Rebel in a sentence

• noun

  The young rebel refused to follow the company dress code.

• verb

  Teenagers often rebel against the limits their parents set.

• noun

  History remembers him as a rebel who challenged the king's taxes.

• verb

  The workers threatened to rebel if their wages were cut again.

Where does rebel come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin rebellis, meaning 'one who renews war' or 'insurgent', which was built from the prefix re- (here carrying the sense of 'again' or 'against') and bellum, the Latin word for 'war'. The original picture is vivid: a conquered people who take up arms a second time against the power that subdued them. English absorbed it through Old French rebelle during the 1300s, at first describing those who defied a king or lawful authority, and only later softening to cover anyone who resists control or convention. The same bellum root that gives us 'war' also lurks in 'belligerent' and 'bellicose', so the single 'l' in the middle of rebel is the spelling clue worth holding onto. The noun and verb split their stress: REB-el names the person, while re-BEL describes the act.

How the word is built

• re- (back, against)
• bell (from Latin bellum: war)
• -is/-le (forming the word)