impertinent
Americanadjective
-
intrusive or presumptuous, as persons or their actions; insolently rude; uncivil.
a brash, impertinent youth.
- Antonyms:
- polite
-
not pertinent or relevant; irrelevant.
an impertinent detail.
-
Archaic. inappropriate, incongruous, or absurd.
-
Obsolete. (of persons) trivial, silly, or absurd.
adjective
-
rude; insolent; impudent
-
irrelevant or inappropriate
Synonym Usage
Impertinent, impudent, insolent refer to bold, rude, and arrogant behavior. Impertinent, from its primary meaning of not pertinent and hence inappropriate or out of place, has come to imply often an unseemly intrusion into what does not concern one, or a presumptuous rudeness toward one entitled to deference or respect: an impertinent interruption, question, manner toward a teacher. Impudent suggests a bold and shameless impertinence: an impudent speech, young rascal. Insolent suggests insulting or arrogantly contemptuous behavior: unbearably insolent toward those in authority.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of impertinent
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English from Late Latin impertinent- (stem of impertinēns ) “not belonging.” See im- 2, pertinent
Explanation
If someone's rude without being openly nasty, like a kid in the back row of class quietly heckling his teacher, you can call him impertinent. Impertinent originally meant just what it sounds like, "not pertinent, irrelevant," but it also came to mean "inappropriate, out of place" and therefore "intrusive, presumptuous; behaving without proper respect; insolent." It still carries a condescending air, so it's best used of or to a child being snippy to a grownup: "Don't be impertinent!" The stress is on the second syllable: im-PERT-inent.
Vocabulary lists containing impertinent
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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.
In the past, words or phrases deemed to have stepped over the line include "impertinent dog", "cad", "blethering", "guttersnipe" and "git".
From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2023
I will not appear to condone the diminishment of any group at the expense of impertinent gestures toward another group for any reason, even when the law of the land appears to require it.’”
From Washington Times ● Mar. 24, 2023
The fictional Cunk, played by the actress Diane Morgan, is confident, impertinent and almost always wrong.
From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2023
The younger characters are lively and appealing, not the least because they can be a little impertinent; as much as they might seem forged according to type, the actors make them into individuals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 30, 2022
“And I can’t forbear—because I am an impertinent fool—saying, ‘I was to guess her mind from the weather, sir?’
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
