flinty

[flin-tee]

See more synonyms for flinty on Thesaurus.com

adjective, flint·i·er, flint·i·est.

composed of, containing, or resembling flint, especially in hardness.
unyielding; unmerciful; obdurate: a flinty heart.

Origin of flinty

First recorded in 1530–40; flint + -y¹

Related formsflint·i·ly, adverbflint·i·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for flinty

Contemporary Examples

The activism, even amongst the community, was difficult and flinty.
Matt Bomer Tells the Personal Story Behind His Heartbreaking ‘Normal Heart’ Performance
Kevin Fallon
May 21, 2014
For Anderson, this is a role that she was born to play: uncompromising and flinty, radiating a ferocity and tough conviction.
The Haunting New Serial-Killer Thriller Heading to Netflix
Jace Lacob
May 22, 2013
For all his flinty wit and occasional impulse to antagonize, Ed Koch was, in the end, almost impossible to dislike.
RIP, Ed Koch
Justin Green
February 1, 2013
“Linda McMahon is clearly not a fiscal conservative, which I am,” says Shays with flinty frustration.
Shays’s Rebellion: The Last Yankee Republican Fights For His Political Life
John Avlon
August 13, 2012
The fact that she comes from flinty, northern coal-miner stock.
Notes From a Royal Wedding
Tina Brown
May 1, 2011

Historical Examples

Others go in, but I beat against its flinty portals with hands that bleed.
The Trail of '98
Robert W. Service
“Under the heart of the flinty hill lies the coal,” he said simply.
The Bishop of Cottontown
John Trotwood Moore
Closer and closer he shrinks to the rock, as if to bury himself in its flinty surface.
Adrift in the Wilds
Edward S. Ellis
Had the flinty and inexorable Robespierre turned fainthearted at last?
Which?
Ernest Daudet
But she met the eyes looking into hers with a flinty resistance.
Seven Miles to Arden
Ruth Sawyer

British Dictionary definitions for flinty

flinty

adjective flintier or flintiest

of, relating to, or resembling flint
hard or cruel; obdurate; unyielding

Derived Formsflintily, adverbflintiness, noun

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

Word Origin and History for flinty

adj.

"hard-hearted," 1530s, from flint + -y (2). Literal sense of "resembling flint" is from 1640s. Related: Flintily; flintiness.

flinty

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}flinty

Related Words

Examples from the Web for flinty

Contemporary Examples

The activism, even amongst the community, was difficult and flinty.

For Anderson, this is a role that she was born to play: uncompromising and flinty, radiating a ferocity and tough conviction.

For all his flinty wit and occasional impulse to antagonize, Ed Koch was, in the end, almost impossible to dislike.

“Linda McMahon is clearly not a fiscal conservative, which I am,” says Shays with flinty frustration.

The fact that she comes from flinty, northern coal-miner stock.

Historical Examples

Others go in, but I beat against its flinty portals with hands that bleed.

“Under the heart of the flinty hill lies the coal,” he said simply.

Closer and closer he shrinks to the rock, as if to bury himself in its flinty surface.

Had the flinty and inexorable Robespierre turned fainthearted at last?

But she met the eyes looking into hers with a flinty resistance.

flinty

Word Origin and History for flinty

adj.

Origin of flinty