adamantine
Americanadjective
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utterly unyielding or firm in attitude or opinion.
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too hard to cut, break, or pierce.
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like a diamond in luster.
adjective
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very hard; unbreakable or unyielding
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having the lustre of a diamond
Etymology
Origin of adamantine
First recorded in 1200–1250; Middle English, from Latin adamantinus, from Greek adamántinos adamant, -ine 1
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.
Although in her youth Catherine had imbibed Enlightenment views about the suffering of the common people, she was pragmatic enough to leave undisturbed the adamantine ways of the Russian countryside.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
Akira is not so much an obstacle, then, as he is a diamond in the rough, a permanent part of Takiko and her adamantine resolve to live on her own terms.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2022
Koirala, a Bollywood star, brings a taut poise to a mother whose veneer seems adamantine until the Duttas walk in the door.
From New York Times • Nov. 18, 2021
She arrived in the United States from India in the early 1980s, armed with a jet-black braid that fell down her back, dreams of dental school and an adamantine sense of determination.
From Washington Post • Jan. 24, 2019
“The haunting begins at midnight,” said the girl with the adamantine chin.
From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston
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.
