Revolution vs. Rebellion — What's the Difference?

A dramatic and wide-reaching change in conditions, attitudes, or operation.

An act of armed resistance to an established government or ruler.

Rotation or movement of an object around its own axis.

A show of opposition to a prevailing idea or practice.

A cycle of events in a recurring sequence.

The action or process of resisting control or convention.

A forcible overthrow of a government or societal order.

An uprising against a perceived wrong or injustice.

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.

Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority.A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and then manifests itself by the refusal to submit or to obey the authority responsible for this situation.

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

An act of armed resistance to an established government or leader

A turning or rotational motion about an axis.

Open, armed, and organized resistance to a constituted government.

A single complete cycle of such orbital or axial motion.

An instance of this.

The overthrow of one government and its replacement with another.

Defiance toward an authority or established convention

A sudden or momentous change in a situation

An instance of this.

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

(uncountable) Armed resistance to an established government or ruler.

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

(countable) Defiance of authority or control; the act of rebelling.

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

(countable) An organized, forceful subversion of the law of the land in an attempt to replace it with another form of government.

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

The act of rebelling; open and avowed renunciation of the authority of the government to which one owes obedience, and resistance to its officers and laws, either by levying war, or by aiding others to do so; an organized uprising of subjects for the purpose of coercing or overthrowing their lawful ruler or government by force; revolt; insurrection.

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

Open resistance to, or defiance of, lawful authority.

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

Refusal to accept some authority or code or convention;

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

Organized opposition to authority; a conflict in which one faction tries to wrest control from another

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

A refusal to obey orders or systems.

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.

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

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.

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.

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

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.

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

The overthrow of a government by those who are governed

A single complete turn (axial or orbital);

A sudden, vast alteration in a situation.

No, some revolutions are suppressed or fail to achieve their objectives.

Not necessarily; while some rebellions escalate into revolutions, others might not.

Absolutely, like the technological revolution brought about by the internet.

No, revolutions can be peaceful, like the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia.

Experts consider factors like objectives, scale, and duration to differentiate.

Undoubtedly, revolutions like the Russian and American have profoundly impacted global events.

Yes, rebellions can manifest as non-violent protests or civil disobedience.

Yes, like cultural revolutions or the Agricultural Revolution.

The Boxer Rebellion in China is a notable historical example.

While related, they have different connotations and aren't always interchangeable.

No, rebellion can also be against cultural norms, societal expectations, or any authority.

Not necessarily; small acts of defiance aren't always termed as rebellions.

Revolutions can reshape societal norms, political structures, and economies.

While not universal, challenging authority or status quo can be a recurring human trait.

Reasons can include perceived injustices, oppression, or a desire for autonomy.