Definition of "counterrevolution" [counterrevolution]

• A revolution whose aim is the deposition and reversal of a political or social system set up by a previous revolution. (noun)
• A movement to oppose revolutionary tendencies and developments. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Spanish Embassy; some of these gentlemen are in contact with the war criminals and they are all in this together; that is what they call the counterrevolution; that is what is called the "reaction.""
• ""The revolution against Christianity has been under way for a few years," writes Gibson, "and now the counterrevolution is gearing up.""
• "This general concern about the threat of atomic war, of revolution and counterrevolution is suffused by almost everybody's preoccupation with the difficult business of living in the modern age."