Reform vs. Revolution — What's the Difference?

Improvement or amendment of what is wrong or corrupt.

The overthrow of a government or social order.

Gradual changes through rules or laws.

A 360-degree turn or rotation.

Incremental change within an existing system.

A significant change that usually occurs in a short period of time.

A planned method to make something better.

In political science, a revolution (Latin: revolutio, "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due to perceived oppression (political, social, economic) or political incompetence. In book V of the Politics, the Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle (384–322 BC) described two types of political revolution: Complete change from one constitution to another Modification of an existing constitution.Revolutions have occurred through human history and vary widely in terms of methods, duration and motivating ideology.

Reform (Latin: reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement which identified “Parliamentary Reform” as its primary aim.

Orbital motion about a point, especially as distinguished from axial rotation

To improve by alteration, correction of error, or removal of defects; put into a better form or condition

A turning or rotational motion about an axis.

To abolish abuse or malpractice in

A single complete cycle of such orbital or axial motion.

To put an end to (an abuse or wrong).

The overthrow of one government and its replacement with another.

To induce or persuade (a person) to give up harmful or immoral practices; cause to adopt a better way of life.

A sudden or momentous change in a situation

(Chemistry) To subject (hydrocarbons) to cracking.

(Geology) A time of major crustal deformation, when folds and faults are formed.

To change for the better.

A political upheaval in a government or state characterized by great change.

Action to improve or correct what is wrong or defective in something

The removal and replacement of a government, especially by sudden violent action.

An instance of this; an improvement

Rotation: the turning of an object around an axis, one complete turn of an object during rotation.

Relating to or favoring reform

In the case of celestial bodies, the traversal of one body along an orbit around another body.

Reform Of or relating to Reform Judaism.

A sudden, vast change in a situation, a discipline, or the way of thinking and behaving.

The change of something that is defective, broken, inefficient or otherwise negative, in order to correct or improve it

A round of periodic changes, such as between the seasons of the year.

(transitive) To put into a new and improved form or condition; to restore to a former good state, or bring from bad to good; to change from worse to better

Consideration of an idea; the act of revolving something in the mind.

(intransitive) To return to a good state; to amend or correct one's own character or habits

The act of revolving, or turning round on an axis or a center; the motion of a body round a fixed point or line; rotation; as, the revolution of a wheel, of a top, of the earth on its axis, etc.

To form again or in a new configuration.

Return to a point before occupied, or to a point relatively the same; a rolling back; return; as, revolution in an ellipse or spiral.

To put into a new and improved form or condition; to restore to a former good state, or bring from bad to good; to change from worse to better; to amend; to correct; as, to reform a profligate man; to reform corrupt manners or morals.

The space measured by the regular return of a revolving body; the period made by the regular recurrence of a measure of time, or by a succession of similar events.

To return to a good state; to amend or correct one's own character or habits; as, a man of settled habits of vice will seldom reform.

The motion of any body, as a planet or satellite, in a curved line or orbit, until it returns to the same point again, or to a point relatively the same; - designated as the annual, anomalistic, nodical, sidereal, or tropical revolution, according as the point of return or completion has a fixed relation to the year, the anomaly, the nodes, the stars, or the tropics; as, the revolution of the earth about the sun; the revolution of the moon about the earth.

Amendment of what is defective, vicious, corrupt, or depraved; reformation; as, reform of elections; reform of government.

The motion of a point, line, or surface about a point or line as its center or axis, in such a manner that a moving point generates a curve, a moving line a surface (called a surface of revolution), and a moving surface a solid (called a solid of revolution); as, the revolution of a right-angled triangle about one of its sides generates a cone; the revolution of a semicircle about the diameter generates a sphere.

A change for the better as a result of correcting abuses;

A total or radical change; as, a revolution in one's circumstances or way of living.

A campaign aimed to correct abuses or malpractices;

A fundamental change in political organization, or in a government or constitution; the overthrow or renunciation of one government, and the substitution of another, by the governed.

Self-improvement in behavior or morals by abandoning some vice;

A drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving;

Make changes for improvement in order to remove abuse and injustices;

The overthrow of a government by those who are governed

Bring, lead, or force to abandon a wrong or evil course of life, conduct, and adopt a right one;

A single complete turn (axial or orbital);

Produce by cracking;

A drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving.

Break up the molecules of;

Radical change that impacts society at multiple levels.

Improve by alteration or correction of errors or defects and put into a better condition;

Change for the better;

The act of improving by renewing and eliminating faults.

Revolution is a drastic, sweeping change that often replaces an existing system with a new one.

Yes, Reform is generally slower and more incremental than Revolution.

Reform is the act of making incremental changes within an existing system to improve it.

No, Revolution can be nonviolent, although it often involves the overthrow of an existing order.

Reform is often enacted by individuals working within the existing system.

In some cases, incremental Reforms can build up to a tipping point that triggers a Revolution.

Yes, a Revolution can result in a new system that itself may be subject to future Reforms.

Revolution is generally countable when referring to specific events.

Revolution often involves a broad segment of the population and can be sparked by widespread dissatisfaction.

Yes, Reform typically works within and aims to improve existing systems.

Often, Revolution aims to replace or drastically overhaul existing systems.

Revolution often involves greater risk and can be more unstable than Reform.

While often enacted through legislation, Reform can also occur through social and cultural channels.

Reform can be both countable and uncountable depending on the context.

Reform is generally less drastic but can be impactful in a cumulative sense, while Revolution is more immediately transformative.