recalcitrant

One entry found for recalcitrant.

Main Entry: re·cal·ci·trant
Pronunciation: -tr&nt
Function: adjective
Etymology: Late Latin recalcitrant-, recalcitrans, present participle of recalcitrare to be stubbornly disobedient, from Latin, to kick back, from re- + calcitrare to kick, from calc-, calx heel
1 : obstinately defiant of authority or restraint
2 a : difficult to manage or operate b : not responsive to treatment c : RESISTANT <this subject is recalcitrant both to observation and to experiment -- G. G. Simpson>
synonym see UNRULY
- recalcitrant noun