obstinate

Verb · Adjective
Synonyms: stubbornunregeneratecussedobdurateunrepentantcontraryperversewayward

WordNet 3.0

Verb (1)

  1. persist stubbornly“he obstinates himself against all rational arguments”

Adjective (3)

  1. tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yieldSynonyms: stubbornunregenerate
  2. stubbornly persistent in wrongdoingSynonyms: cussedobdurateunrepentant
  3. resistant to guidance or discipline“Mary Mary quite contrary”“an obstinate child with a violent temper”“a perverse mood”“wayward behavior”Synonyms: contraryperversewayward
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Obstinate \Ob"sti*nate\, a. [L. obstinatus, p. p. of obstinare to set about a thing with firmness, to persist in; ob (see Ob-) + a word from the root of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Destine.]

1.Pertinaciously adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course; persistent; not yielding to reason, arguments, or other means; stubborn; pertinacious; -- usually implying unreasonableness. [1913 Webster]

I have known great cures done by obstinate resolution of drinking no wine.— Sir W. Temple.[1913 Webster]
No ass so meek, no ass so obstinate.— Pope.[1913 Webster]
Of sense and outward things.— Wordsworth.[1913 Webster]

2.Not yielding; not easily subdued or removed; as, obstinate fever; obstinate obstructions. [1913 Webster]

Syn: Stubborn; inflexible; immovable; firm; pertinacious; persistent; headstrong; opinionated; unyielding; refractory; contumacious. See Stubborn. [1913 Webster] -- Ob"sti*nate*ly, adv. -- Ob"sti*nate*ness, n. [1913 Webster]

The Devil's Dictionary

OBSTINATE, adj. Inaccessible to the truth as it is manifest in the splendor and stress of our advocacy. The popular type and exponent of obstinacy is the mule, a most intelligent animal.
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