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History vocabulary · Revolutions and Political Change

Revolution

Meaning in history, with examples

/ˌrevəˈluːʃn/nounCore term

In history, revolution means: The sudden, often violent overthrow of a government or political system by its people, or any deep and rapid change in society, the economy or ideas.

In Turkish: devrim, inkılap

How it is used

Political revolutions break out, spread, succeed or fail: the French Revolution (1789), the revolutions of 1848. The word also describes long-term change: the Industrial Revolution, the Neolithic Revolution. Revolutionary is both an adjective and a noun for a supporter of revolution.

Example sentences

  1. The French Revolution of 1789 abolished the privileges of the nobility.

  2. Historians debate whether the changes in farming really amounted to a revolution.

Common collocations

  • the French Revolution
  • lead a revolution
  • a revolution breaks out
  • revolutionary ideas
  • the Industrial Revolution
  • uprisingAn act of resistance in which a group of people rise up against those in power, usually in a particular region or city and often with few weapons.
  • coupA sudden and usually illegal seizure of power by a small group, often army officers, who remove the existing government by force or the threat of force.
  • reformA planned change to laws, institutions or practices meant to improve them, usually made step by step by those in power rather than through revolution.
  • regimeA system of government, or the group of people in power in a country for a certain period, often used for governments that are not democratic.
  • Industrial RevolutionThe shift from hand production to machines, factories and new energy sources such as coal and steam, which began in Britain in the late eighteenth century.

More terms: Revolutions and Political Change

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