definitions

adamant

[ ad-uh-muhnt, -mant ]
/ ˈæd ə mənt, -ˌmænt /
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR adamant ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

utterly unyielding in attitude or opinion in spite of all appeals, urgings, etc.
too hard to cut, break, or pierce.

noun

any impenetrably or unyieldingly hard substance.
a legendary stone of impenetrable hardness, formerly sometimes identified with the diamond.

RELATED WORDS

uncompromising, stubborn, resolute, determined, intransigent, insistent, rigid, firm, immovable, set, pat, stiff, tough, fixed, hard-nosed, inexorable, inflexible, obdurate, relentless, unbending

Nearby words

adam's bridge, adam's cup, adam's-needle, adam-and-eve, adama, adamant, adamantane, adamantine, adamantine membrane, adamantinoma, adamawa

Origin of adamant

before 900; Middle English < Old French adamaunt < Latin adamant- (stem of adamas) hard metal (perhaps steel), diamond < Greek, equivalent to a- a-6 + -damant- verbal adjective of damân to tame, conquer; replacing Old English athamans (< Medieval Latin) and Middle English aymont < Middle French aimant < Vulgar Latin *adimant- < Latin

Related forms

ad·a·man·cy [ad-uh-muhn-see] /ˈæd ə mən si/, ad·a·mance, nounad·a·mant·ly, adverbun·ad·a·mant, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for adamant

British Dictionary definitions for adamant

adamant

/ (ˈædəmənt) /

adjective

unshakable in purpose, determination, or opinion; unyielding
a less common word for adamantine (def. 1)

noun

any extremely hard or apparently unbreakable substance
a legendary stone said to be impenetrable, often identified with the diamond or loadstone

Derived Forms

adamantly, adverb

Word Origin for adamant

Old English: from Latin adamant-, stem of adamas, from Greek; literal meaning perhaps: unconquerable, from a- 1 + daman to tame, conquer
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012