Meanings
plural regime changes
- countableuncountablegeopoliticsThe overthrow of a government that is considered an illegitimate regime by means of an external force (especially military might), and its replacement with a new government according to the concept of political legitimacy promoted by that force.
Synonyms: rollback
- broadlycountableuncountableA radical change; a paradigm shift.
This week's SpaceX flotation is just the latest sign: we are facing regime change not just in technology, but in finance. In finance, the regime change begins with a handful of companies that have towered over stock markets for 20 years or more.
2026 June 13, Robert Armstrong, “AI is revolutionising the stock market”, in FT Weekend, London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 5
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe overthrow of a government that is considered an illegitimate regime by means of an external force (especially military might), and its replacement with a new government according to the concept of political legitimacy promoted by that force.
Origin
Widely believed to have been coined by U.S. President Bill Clinton and popularized by his Presidential successor George W. Bush in reference to the regime of Saddam Hussein. Use of the term dates back to 1925.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic تَغْيِير اَلْنِظَام
- تَغْيِير اَلْنِظَام (taḡyīr al-niẓām)overthrow of a government
Chinese Mandarin 政權更迭 /政权更迭, 政權交替 /政权交替
- 政權更迭 /政权更迭 (zhèngquán gēngdié)overthrow of a government
- 政權交替 /政权交替 (zhèngquán jiāotì)overthrow of a government
- 政權更換 /政权更换 (zhèngquán gēnghuàn)overthrow of a government
- 政權變動 /政权变动 (zhèngquán biàndòng)overthrow of a government
Danish regimeskifte
- regimeskifteoverthrow of a government
Dutch regimeverandering
- regimeveranderingoverthrow of a government
Finnish vallanvaihto, hallinnon vaihto
- vallanvaihtooverthrow of a government
- hallinnon vaihtooverthrow of a government
- regiimin vaihtooverthrow of a government
French changement de régime
- changement de régimeoverthrow of a government
German Regimewechsel, Regimeänderung
- Regimewechseloverthrow of a government
- Regimeänderungoverthrow of a government
Greek αλλαγή καθεστώτος
- αλλαγή καθεστώτος (allagí kathestótos)overthrow of a government
Hindi शासन में परिवर्तन
- शासन में परिवर्तन (śāsan mẽ parivartan)overthrow of a government
Italian cambiamento di regime
- cambiamento di regimeoverthrow of a government
Japanese 政体の変更, レジームチェンジ
- 政体の変更 (seitai no henkō)overthrow of a government
- レジームチェンジ (rejīmu chenji)overthrow of a government
Korean 정권교체
- 정권교체 (jeonggwon'gyoche)overthrow of a government
Persian تغییر رژیم, رژیم چنج
- تغییر رژیم (taġyir-e režim)overthrow of a government
- رژیم چنج (režim čenj)overthrow of a government
Polish transformacja ustrojowa
- transformacja ustrojowaoverthrow of a government
Portuguese mudança de regime
- mudança de regimeoverthrow of a government
Romanian schimbare de regim
- schimbare de regimoverthrow of a government
Russian сме́на режи́ма
- сме́на режи́ма (sména režíma)overthrow of a government
Spanish cambio de régimen
- cambio de régimenoverthrow of a government
Swedish regimskifte
- regimskifteoverthrow of a government
Vietnamese việc lật đổ chế độ, sự thay đổi chế độ
- việc lật đổ chế độoverthrow of a government
- sự thay đổi chế độoverthrow of a government
Cite this entry
regime change. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/regime%20change
“regime change.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/regime%20change. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “regime change,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/regime%20change.
Source: regime change on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.