insistent
Americanadjective
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earnest or emphatic in dwelling upon, maintaining, or demanding something; persistent; pertinacious.
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compelling attention or notice.
an insistent tone.
adjective
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making continual and persistent demands
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demanding notice or attention; compelling
the insistent cry of a bird
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of insistent
1615–25; < Latin insistent- (stem of in-sistēns ), present participle of insistere. See insist, -ent
Explanation
Insistent means "unwilling to let go or back down." If a salesperson is insistent, you may find it hard to walk away without buying something. Insistent shares a root with the verb insist: the Latin word insistere, which means "persist, dwell upon, stand upon." If you are insistent, you won't take "no" for an answer, dwelling on your ideas, standing up for your position. Insistent can also mean "demanding attention," like the insistent ringing of the telephone at a busy office or the insistent cries of a hungry baby.
Vocabulary lists containing insistent
Unit 1: Telling Details
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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"The Metamorphosis," Vocabulary from the novella
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Insistent music is playing, accompanied by the even more insistent squawk of children lunching with their parents.
From The Guardian • Apr. 12, 2019
Insistent disco-punk beats underline airy synthesizers and clashing guitars, which tussle throughout the song with varying degrees of aggression.
From Salon • Aug. 31, 2018
Insistent cello motifs underpinned melodies in the upper strings, punctuated by energetic outbursts and elegiac passages.
From New York Times • Jun. 6, 2010
Insistent was he that it would produce sugar rates lower than those in the House bill.
From Time Magazine Archive
Insistent cries for food came from the members of the defeated Teutonic alliance, as well as from the suffering Allied and neutral nations.
From History of the World War An Authentic Narrative of the World's Greatest War by March, Francis Andrew
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
