obstinate

adjective

ob·sti·nate ˈäb-stə-nət How to pronounce obstinate (audio)

: stubbornly adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion

obstinate resistance to change

: not easily subdued, remedied, or removed

obstinate fever

obstinately adverb

obstinateness noun

Did you know?

If you're obstinate, you're just plain stubborn. Obstinate, dogged, stubborn, and mulish all mean that someone is unwilling to change course or give up a belief or plan. Obstinate suggests an unreasonable persistence; it's often a negative word. Dogged implies that someone goes after something without ever tiring or quitting; it can be more positive. Stubborn indicates a resistance to change, which may or may not be admirable. Someone who displays a really unreasonable degree of stubbornness could accurately be described as mulish.

Example Sentences

More than 30 cities had sued the gun industry for the costs of violence on their streets. Cuomo had brashly stepped into the legal swamp, hoping he could be the guy to force concessions from an obstinate industry.

Matt Bai, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2001 With The New York Times calling Klein "a weak nominee" and editorializing that the administration should withdraw him, and with his opponents obstinate and apparently committed, he seemed for a moment to be in serious trouble.

John Heilemann, Wired, November 2000 What did they know of life? All they knew was how to parrot the stock phrases of their profession and to continue to be obstinate until somebody, somewhere, paid up.

Alexander McCall Smith, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, 1998 When my father finished telling the story, he looked at me, then looked away. A moment of silence lodged between us, an old and obstinate silence.

Bernard Cooper, Harper's, August 1992 his obstinate refusal to obey My parents remain as obstinate as ever. See More

Recent Examples on the Web While many Big Tech companies have fought the right-to-repair movement, opposing dozens of state and federal bills that would force manufacturers to sell necessary repair items to customers, Apple has a reputation for being particularly obstinate.

Jacob Carpenter, Fortune, 18 Nov. 2021 Sadly, many Western politicians and intellectuals remain obstinate.

Alexander William Salter, National Review, 22 July 2021 There was nothing stopping the NCAA from working toward a compromise and avoid running afoul of this Supreme Court case; its decision to fight now looks obstinate and misguided.

Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 21 June 2021 Ed remains obstinate, but the other guys keep them from coming to blows.

Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 18 Nov. 2020 Many less attractive traits are also recorded: Charles could be uncommunicative and dilatory, evasive and mendacious, refractory, vindictive, obstinate, even outright wicked, though self-delusive about the motives of others.

R.j.w. Evans, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2020 Zelenskiy and Ukraine may be facing a similarly sensitive and obstinate government to the one the country confronted over the 2014 incident.

Washington Post, 10 Jan. 2020 Since the first cases here were diagnosed nearly five weeks ago, an obstinate equanimity has prevailed.

Arthur Longworth, The New York Review of Books, 12 Apr. 2020 And the obstinate idiosyncrasies of his music were at times judged even more harshly.

Seth Colter Walls, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2020 See More

单词	obstinateness
释义	obstinate adjective ob·sti·nate ˈäb-stə-nət 1 : stubbornly adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion obstinate resistance to change 2 : not easily subdued, remedied, or removed obstinate fever obstinately adverb obstinateness noun Did you know? If you're obstinate, you're just plain stubborn. Obstinate, dogged, stubborn, and mulish all mean that someone is unwilling to change course or give up a belief or plan. Obstinate suggests an unreasonable persistence; it's often a negative word. Dogged implies that someone goes after something without ever tiring or quitting; it can be more positive. Stubborn indicates a resistance to change, which may or may not be admirable. Someone who displays a really unreasonable degree of stubbornness could accurately be described as mulish. Synonyms adamant adamantine bullheaded dogged hard hardened hardheaded hard-nosed headstrong immovable implacable inconvincible inflexible intransigent mulish obdurate opinionated ossified pat pertinacious perverse pigheaded self-opinionated self-willed stiff-necked stubborn unbending uncompromising unrelenting unyielding willful wilful See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences More than 30 cities had sued the gun industry for the costs of violence on their streets. Cuomo had brashly stepped into the legal swamp, hoping he could be the guy to force concessions from an obstinate industry. Matt Bai, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2001 With The New York Times calling Klein "a weak nominee" and editorializing that the administration should withdraw him, and with his opponents obstinate and apparently committed, he seemed for a moment to be in serious trouble. John Heilemann, Wired, November 2000 What did they know of life? All they knew was how to parrot the stock phrases of their profession and to continue to be obstinate until somebody, somewhere, paid up. Alexander McCall Smith, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, 1998 When my father finished telling the story, he looked at me, then looked away. A moment of silence lodged between us, an old and obstinate silence. Bernard Cooper, Harper's, August 1992 his obstinate refusal to obey My parents remain as obstinate as ever. See More Recent Examples on the Web While many Big Tech companies have fought the right-to-repair movement, opposing dozens of state and federal bills that would force manufacturers to sell necessary repair items to customers, Apple has a reputation for being particularly obstinate. Jacob Carpenter, Fortune, 18 Nov. 2021 Sadly, many Western politicians and intellectuals remain obstinate. Alexander William Salter, National Review, 22 July 2021 There was nothing stopping the NCAA from working toward a compromise and avoid running afoul of this Supreme Court case; its decision to fight now looks obstinate and misguided. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 21 June 2021 Ed remains obstinate, but the other guys keep them from coming to blows. Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 18 Nov. 2020 Many less attractive traits are also recorded: Charles could be uncommunicative and dilatory, evasive and mendacious, refractory, vindictive, obstinate, even outright wicked, though self-delusive about the motives of others. R.j.w. Evans, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2020 Zelenskiy and Ukraine may be facing a similarly sensitive and obstinate government to the one the country confronted over the 2014 incident. Washington Post, 10 Jan. 2020 Since the first cases here were diagnosed nearly five weeks ago, an obstinate equanimity has prevailed. Arthur Longworth, The New York Review of Books, 12 Apr. 2020 And the obstinate idiosyncrasies of his music were at times judged even more harshly. Seth Colter Walls, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2020 See More Word History Etymology Middle English, from Anglo-French obstinat, Latin obstinatus, past participle of obstinare to be resolved, from ob- in the way + -stinare (akin to stare to stand) First Known Use 14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Kids Definition obstinate adjective ob·sti·nate ˈäb-stə-nət 1 : sticking stubbornly to an opinion or purpose 2 : difficult to deal with or get rid of an obstinate fever Medical Definition obstinate adjective ob·sti·nate ˈäb-stə-nət 1 : adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion 2 : not easily subdued, remedied, or removed obstinate fever obstinateness noun as in resolve a steadfast adherence to an opinion, purpose, or course of action in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion regardless of the issue, she holds onto her position with an obstinateness that would exhaust the patience of a saint Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance resolve obdurateness persistence opinionatedness mulishness pertinaciousness obstinacy persistency determination stubbornness bullheadedness pigheadedness self-opinionatedness intransigence pertinacity obduracy doggedness willfulness hardheadedness balkiness wrongheadedness steadfastness defiance waywardness self-will obstreperousness perverseness perseverance perversity inflexibility recalcitrancy implacability rigidity tenacity inexorability rebelliousness hardness sternness immovableness strictness inveteracy tenaciousness anal-retentiveness adamancy firmness adamance rigidness relentlessness contumacy disobedience immovability stick-to-itiveness single-mindedness unruliness refractoriness rigorousness insubordination recalcitrance frowardness cussedness intractability cantankerousness rigor contrariness bloody-mindedness narrow-mindedness Antonyms & Near Antonyms acceptance reasonableness flexibility receptivity acquiescence receptiveness reasonability pliantness compliance pliability pliableness subordination pliancy subordinateness willingness obedience surrender docility submission broad-mindedness yielding open-mindedness subservience subserviency slavishness See More
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obstinate

adjective

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Kids Definition

adjective

Medical Definition

adjective

noun