sandinista

noun, plural San·di·nis·tas [san-duh–nee-stuh z; Spanish sahn-dee-nees-tahs] /ˌsæn dəˈni stəz; Spanish ˌsɑn diˈnis tɑs/.

1. a member of the Nicaraguan revolutionary movement that took control of Nicaragua in 1979.

noun (in Nicaragua)

1. 1. one of a left-wing group of revolutionaries who overthrew President Somoza in 1979 and formed a socialist coalition government. The Sandinistas were opposed militarily by the US-backed Contras during the 1980s and were defeated in a general election in 1990
   2. (as modifier)the Sandinista revolution

n.member of a Nicaraguan revolutionary group, 1928, from Spanish, from name of Augusto César Sandino (1893-1934), Nicaraguan nationalist leader; the modern organization of this name was founded in 1963. Related: Sandanistas.