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DictionaryputschGovernment overthrow attempt
noun

putsch

PUTCH/pʊtʃ/

A sudden attempt to overthrow a government.

Army officers launch a putsch while the president is abroad.

Armed military insurgents force their way into a parliamentary chamber during a sitting, overpowering its guard and advancing on the presiding government official.
Etymology
putschGermanrevolt, riot; sudden blow

Putsch carries the image of a sudden blow or thrust. That physical shock became a political one: a revolt aimed at forcibly overturning a government.

In context

Simple History9:34
perhaps the most enduring legacy of the Beer Hall Putsch was that it taught Hitler that the way to win power in Germany was by following legal means rather than violent revolution
The Beer Hall Putsch (1923)

More examples

  • The failed putsch ends with the arrest of its leaders.
  • Rumors of a military putsch spread through the capital.
  • The country has survived two putsches in five years.

Forms

putsch · putsches

Similar words

coup
Often describes a completed takeover rather than just an attempt.
rebellion
May challenge government authority without aiming to seize national power.