Synonyms for recalcitrant
- adjective
Most common
stubborn obstinate intransigent obstreperous defiant disobedient awkward
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Stubborn — difficult to deal with or to operate
stubborn, obstreperous, obstinate, intransigent, restive, obdurate, unruly, wayward, sullen, unyielding, immovable, adversarial, bolshie UK, truculent, intractable, inflexible, unbending, headstrong, self-willed, rigid, unmanageable, dogged
2. Disobedient — marked by a stubborn unwillingness to obey authority
disobedient, defiant, insubordinate, rebellious, argumentative, mutinous, ungovernable
3. Refractory
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Marked by a stubborn unwillingness to obey authority.
- adj. 2
Difficult to deal with or to operate.
- adj. 3
Unwilling to cooperate socially.
Related words
- Word family
- recalcitrance recalcitrancy
Example sentences
- stubborn I'm not stubborn; i'm just always right, thats it.
- obstinate I've heard that Tom and Mary are quite obstinate.
- intransigent He is a stubborn and intransigent demagogue.
- defiant The defiant manner is characteristic of teenagers.
- disobedient Disobedient boys can not be happy in this world.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| recalcitrant | rising | |
| stubborn | rising | |
| obstinate | steady | |
| intransigent | falling | |
| obstreperous | steady | |
| defiant | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- rigid2
- 6 letters
- unruly3, dogged1, sullen2
- 7 letters
- awkward2, defiant3, wayward2, restive2, bolshie
- 8 letters
- stubborn2, mutinous3, obdurate3
- 9 letters
- immovable4, obstinate3, fractious2, unbending3, truculent3
- 10 letters
- rebellious3, inflexible4, refractory4, unyielding3, headstrong2
- 11 letters
- intractable4, adversarial5, disobedient5
- 12 letters
- unmanageable5, intransigent4, ungovernable5, obstreperous4
- 13 letters
- argumentative5, insubordinate5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (rigid2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- récalcitrant
- Italiano
- scontroso
- Deutsch
- bockig