rev·o·lu·tion·ary
ˌre-və-ˈlü-shə-ˌner-ē 
1
a
: of, relating to, or constituting a revolution
revolutionary war
b
: tending to or promoting revolution
c
: constituting or bringing about a major or fundamental change
a revolutionary new product
2
capitalized
: of or relating to the American Revolution or to the period in which it occurred
plural revolutionaries
1
: one engaged in a revolution
2
: an advocate or adherent of revolutionary doctrines
Examples of revolutionary in a Sentence
Adjective
a candidate with a lot of crazy, revolutionary ideas that no one seems to be going for
revolutionary forces that were soundly defeated before reaching the capital
Noun
after the collapse of the Russian monarchy, the moderate socialists briefly governed until being overthrown by the Bolshevik revolutionaries
at first the government was not worried about this small band of unarmed revolutionaries
Recent Examples on the Web
Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 16 Mar. 2025
The same is true of Ramaswamy, who seems to not realize that whatever revolutionary new drugs and treatments his biotech startups might produce will not simply appear magically in the marketplace ready to take on some of society’s most intractable diseases.
—Jeffery Vacante, Hartford Courant, 16 Mar. 2025
Valerie Mesa, People.com, 7 Mar. 2025
Showrunner Tony Gilroy highlighted the film’s scale and ordinary characters, from Imperial overlords to passionate revolutionaries, in a statement Monday.
—Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for revolutionary
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Adjective
The trouble for Trump is that Columbia, despite its history of student activism, does not really fit the right-wing image of a revolutionary institution bent on D.E.I. indoctrination.
—Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 16 Mar. 2025
The same is true of Ramaswamy, who seems to not realize that whatever revolutionary new drugs and treatments his biotech startups might produce will not simply appear magically in the marketplace ready to take on some of society’s most intractable diseases.
—Jeffery Vacante, Hartford Courant, 16 Mar. 2025
Noun
Born This Way Governed by eccentric Uranus — the planet of individuality, rebellion and unexpected breakthroughs — Aquarius is often considered the revolutionary of the zodiac.
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 7 Mar. 2025
Showrunner Tony Gilroy highlighted the film’s scale and ordinary characters, from Imperial overlords to passionate revolutionaries, in a statement Monday.
—Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for revolutionary
Cite this Entry
“Revolutionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/revolutionary. Accessed 20 Mar. 2025.
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