disobedient
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of disobedient
1400–50; late Middle English < Old French desobedient, equivalent to des- dis- 1 + obedient obedient
Explanation
Someone who's disobedient doesn't follow the rules. If your dog won't sit, stay, or heel, you can describe her as disobedient. When you refuse to obey someone in authority, you're disobedient. A frustrated substitute teacher might describe the entire second grade class as disobedient, and you may try to train your cat to use the toilet but find her to be a disobedient pet. The word comes from combining obedient — with its root of oboedientem, Latin for "obey," — with the prefix dis, or "do the opposite of."
Vocabulary lists containing disobedient
Power Prefix: dis-
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dis-
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: dis-
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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.
Balhatchet admitted contempt of court and apologised in person to the Court of Appeal for the "appalling failures" of his force, which Lord Justice Fraser described as "wilfully disobedient".
From BBC • Apr. 30, 2026
From March onward, “instead of dividing into small groups and blocking roads, we will hold disobedient gatherings with many people. And where we cannot be ignored,” the group said in a statement.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 29, 2024
“Vieux Carré,” Williams’ somewhat louche 1977 memory play often unfairly consigned to the detention table with the playwright’s other disobedient late works, thrived in the Wooster Group’s weirdo company.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 9, 2023
Some of the school's aides are assigned to one of two "crisis teams" of four employees each that respond to classrooms and can remove students who are upset, disobedient or aggressive.
From Salon • Dec. 20, 2022
He did not want a rich daughter-in-law lest she be haughty and disobedient and cry for this and that of food and clothes and turn aside his son’s heart from his parents.
From "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck
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.
