insist
Americanverb (used without object)
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insists,
present (3rd person singular)
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insisted,
past participle, past
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insisting
present participle
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to be emphatic, firm, or resolute on some matter of desire, demand, intention, etc..
He insists on checking every shipment.
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to lay emphasis in assertion.
to insist on the justice of a claim.
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to dwell with earnestness or emphasis (usually followed by on orupon ).
to insist on a point in a discussion.
verb
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to make a determined demand (for)
he insisted that his rights be respected
he insisted on his rights
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to express a convinced belief (in) or assertion (of)
he insisted that she was mad
he insisted on her madness
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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insisternoun
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overinsistverb (used without object)
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reinsistverb (used without object)
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superinsistverb (used without object)
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insistinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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insistsimple
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insistssimple
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have insistedperfect
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has insistedperfect
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am insistingprogressive
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are insistingprogressive
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is insistingprogressive
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have been insistingperfect progressive
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has been insistingperfect progressive
Past
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insistedsimple
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had insistedperfect
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was insistingprogressive
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were insistingprogressive
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had been insistingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of insist
First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin insistere “to stand still on, persist in,” from in- in- 2 + sistere “to cause to stand, stop” ( see also stand)
Explanation
To insist on something is to demand or swear to it. You can insist that you didn't eat the last piece of cake, and then insist that your brother show your mom the bits of frosting on his fingers. The verb insist comes from the Latin insistere, meaning “persist,” “dwell upon,” or “stand on.” To insist on something, like a room with a view, is to say that you must have it. To insist that you never met that man before in your life — even though there's a picture of the two of you together — is to claim that you're telling the truth. To insist on tapping your foot on the chair leg is annoying.
Vocabulary lists containing insist
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"Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" by Rudyard Kipling
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List 11
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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.
See Examples For:
City insist they are innocent but there will be sections of the Liverpool fanbase and former players and staff that feel aggrieved.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
The pollution from the chimneys is worse at night, locals insist, when the smoke cannot be so clearly seen.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
As Jordan, Rock delivers an insult comedy act about everything wrong with the town, including studio executives who insist he shoot Vancouver for Detroit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
Statisticians I have consulted insist that it’s almost certainly a coincidence that those three particularly terrible months for the market happened to occur in October.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
“Speak to Lizzy about it yourself. Tell her that you insist upon her marrying him.”
From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
The state insists the girl enter the mainstream American education system while mom goes to work; the innocent, awe-struck Carrie enters Ewen High with anticipation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Coach Lionel Scaloni insists that if Messi ever wants to carry on, he can, and there is no embarrassment in changing one's mind.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
But we question why the parents must move to a high-cost area and surrender essentially all of their assets to finance a property that the older brother insists on owning and controlling.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
Malaysia insists all returnees agreed to voluntary repatriation from detention centres, where Myanmar says they had completed sentences for immigration offences.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
They discuss less substantial matters until Celia insists that she should be getting back to the circus.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
When asked about the explosions, President Zelensky has previously insisted that Ukraine "definitely didn't do that".
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
Lai welcomed talks between the United States and China, but insisted "there must be respect for the right of the people of Taiwan to exist".
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
LaPaglia later insisted that she had “not told one lie ever” about her relationship with Bryan and claimed that she had ultimately turned down an offer worth $12.9 million.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026
Ditka would come to have other regrets, though he strangely insisted he’d do the Ricky Williams deal again.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
Around midnight, Mrs. Walter insisted Maggie try to sleep.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
His office later sought to clarify the remarks, insisting "there can't be any suggestion that anyone is above the rules".
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Cage solved my next problem by insisting that the way to discover new things is to overcome our dependence on our likes and dislikes, those supposed pillars of criticism.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
This time Eddie Hearn kept insisting the fight should take place in Britain for British fans.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
Realtors insisting you buy before you’re priced out of the market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
The correspondence between theories and facts was so crucial that Galileo and Newton were prepared to bend the facts to fit the theories, even while insisting on the priority of experience over theory.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
