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Recalcitrant

Adjective

IPA /rɪˈkælsɪtrənt/

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Meaning in plain English

Stubbornly resistant to authority, control, or guidance.

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Pronunciation

Recalcitrant/rɪˈkælsɪtrənt/

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Guidance or an instruction is given
Stubborn resistance

A recalcitrant person resists authority or guidance.

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The recalcitrant student refused to follow the classroom rules.
His recalcitrant attitude made teamwork nearly impossible.

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The ________ student refused to follow the classroom rules.

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Recalcitrant — Stubbornly resistant to authority, control, or guidance.

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Stubbornly resistant to authority, control, or guidance.

Compare: The recalcitrant student refused to follow the classroom rules.

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Recalcitrant resistance

Recalcitrant often describes stubborn refusal to cooperate or obey. It can also describe something difficult to manage, such as an unreliable machine. In a sentence about a person, it carries a critical judgment; a reasonable objection alone does not establish recalcitrance.

In context: After several reminders, the recalcitrant club member still refused to return the shared equipment.

Try it: In “a recalcitrant printer,” is the writer claiming that the machine has opinions?

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No. The adjective is extended to something difficult to operate or manage.

Compare with Contumacious →

Dictionary reference: Merriam-Webster: Recalcitrant.

Word origin

From Latin recalcitrare — re- ("back") + calcitrare ("to kick"), literally “to kick back.”

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Recalcitrant describes stubborn resistance to authority, guidance or control. The resistance may be expressed through active opposition or an unwillingness to cooperate.

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