insist

[in-sist]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR insist ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to be emphatic, firm, or resolute on some matter of desire, demand, intention, etc.: He insists on checking every shipment.

to lay emphasis in assertion: to insist on the justice of a claim.

to dwell with earnestness or emphasis (usually followed by on or upon): to insist on a point in a discussion.

verb (used with object)

to assert or maintain firmly: He insists that he saw the ghosts.

to demand or persist in demanding: I insist that you see this thing through.

Origin of insist

1580–90; < Latin insistere to stand still on, persist in, equivalent to in- in-² + sistere to stand, make stand, reduplicated derivative from base of stāre to stand

Related formsin·sist·er, nounin·sist·ing·ly, adverbo·ver·in·sist, verb (used without object)re·in·sist, verb (used without object)su·per·in·sist, verb (used without object)

Synonyms for insist

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR insist ON THESAURUS.COM

5. urge, require.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for insist

contend, urge, reiterate, repeat, request, maintain, assert, vow, demand, press, hold, swear, require, importune, asseverate, persist, aver

Examples from the Web for insist

Contemporary Examples of insist

The only great thing he did as governor was to insist that the death penalty was just wrong.
Mario Cuomo: An OK Governor, but a Far Better Person
Michael Tomasky
January 2, 2015
No crimes were committed by Sony with the possible exception of all those Adam Sandler movies they insist on making.
The Disaster Story That Hollywood Had Coming
Doug McIntyre
December 17, 2014
They all insist that Health Republic/MagnaCare had not told their billing departments that I was out of network.
My Insurance Company Killed Me, Despite Obamacare
Malcolm MacDougall
November 24, 2014
But veterans of his campaign for Senate and people close to him insist that Webb is taking a serious look.
Hillary Gets a Challenger and He’s a Marine
David Freedlander
November 21, 2014
But he insist his character, Petel (Hebrew for raspberry) has a universal appeal.
Trans in the Holy Land: ‘Marzipan Flowers,’ Tal Kallai, and the Shattering of Israel’s LGBT Taboos
Itay Hod
November 4, 2014

Historical Examples of insist

"Then I must insist that you appoint your successor," said Aspasia.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
Did you not insist on going home with Hester Paine, when I had offered my escort?
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
They want to get into the garage; they insist on washing the car.
Her Father's Daughter
Gene Stratton-Porter
The Sphinx is a woman, as I will insist to my dying day, if it were my last word!
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
The Thought had been wise not to insist too much on recognition.
The Incomplete Amorist
E. Nesbit

British Dictionary definitions for insist

insist

verb

to make a determined demand (for)he insisted that his rights be respected; he insisted on his rights

to express a convinced belief (in) or assertion (of)he insisted that she was mad; he insisted on her madness

Derived Formsinsister, nouninsistingly, adverb

Word Origin for insist

C16: from Latin insistere to stand upon, urge, from in- ² + sistere to stand

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 insist

1580s, from Latin insistere "persist, dwell upon, stand upon," from in- "upon" (see in- (2)) + sistere "take a stand" (see assist). Perhaps in some cases a back-formation from insistence. Related: Insisted; insisting.