insistent
Americanadjective
-
earnest or emphatic in dwelling upon, maintaining, or demanding something; persistent; pertinacious.
-
compelling attention or notice.
an insistent tone.
adjective
-
making continual and persistent demands
-
demanding notice or attention; compelling
the insistent cry of a bird
Other Word Forms
- insistence noun
- insistently adverb
- noninsistent adjective
- overinsistent adjective
- overinsistently adverb
- quasi-insistent adjective
- quasi-insistently adverb
- superinsistent adjective
- superinsistently adverb
- uninsistent adjective
- uninsistently adverb
Etymology
Origin of insistent
1615–25; < Latin insistent- (stem of in-sistēns ), present participle of insistere. See insist, -ent
Explanation
Insistent means "unwilling to let go or back down." If a salesperson is insistent, you may find it hard to walk away without buying something. Insistent shares a root with the verb insist: the Latin word insistere, which means "persist, dwell upon, stand upon." If you are insistent, you won't take "no" for an answer, dwelling on your ideas, standing up for your position. Insistent can also mean "demanding attention," like the insistent ringing of the telephone at a busy office or the insistent cries of a hungry baby.
Vocabulary lists containing insistent
Unit 1: Telling Details
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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"The Metamorphosis," Vocabulary from the novella
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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.
Survival has its own language—quieter than we expect, but no less insistent.
From Slate • Mar. 29, 2026
Pawson considered the merits of a red card but Gillett was insistent the challenge was only reckless and a yellow card.
From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026
A guru is one who dispels illusions, and there is perhaps no illusion so insistent, or potentially more harmful to the individual, than the illusion that he will live forever.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
Moving the Notre Dame game to the beginning of the season seems fair to everyone, even if Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua seems insistent on keeping USC as their season savior.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 7, 2025
“You have a new friend,” she says, her voice low and insistent.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
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.
