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hotspur

American  
[hot-spur] / ˈhɒtˌspɜr /

noun

  1. an impetuous or reckless person; a hothead.


Hotspur 1 British  
/ ˈhɒtˌspɜː /

noun

  1. the nickname of Sir Henry Percy See Percy

"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

hotspur 2 British  
/ ˈhɒtˌspɜː /

noun

  1. an impetuous or fiery person

"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

Other Word Forms

  • hotspurred adjective

Etymology

Origin of hotspur

1425–75; late Middle English; after Sir Henry Percy, to whom it was applied as a nickname

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.

More significant men of his time can be discussed without passion because they are inextricably woven into a tapestry of the past, but this hotspur refuses to die.

From Reuters • Jan. 11, 2013

“You try telling that hotspur Phaeton why he was reined in, or rosy-fingered Aurora why I had to shove her in the face,” Hermes archly tells the reader.

From New York Times • Apr. 4, 2010

Libyan Leader Muammar Gaddafi, the hotspur of the Arab world, barged into the internal problems of another nation for the second time in two weeks.

From Time Magazine Archive

His extraordinary behavior, manifested in a supreme disregard for social etiquette, won for him the sobriquet of "the hotspur of Europe," and the conviction that he was mad.

From Time Magazine Archive

The white varieties grown in fields are the pearl, early Charlton, golden hotspur, the common white, or Suffolk, and other Suffolk varieties.

From The Book of Household Management by Beeton, Mrs. (Isabella Mary)