insolent
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Related Words
See impertinent.
Other Word Forms
- insolence noun
- insolently adverb
- overinsolent adjective
- overinsolently adverb
Etymology
Origin of insolent
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English from Latin insolent- (stem of insolēns ) “departing from custom,” equivalent to in- in- 3 + sol- (stem of solēre “to be accustomed”) + -ent- -ent
Explanation
Someone who's insolent is either really doing her own thing, even if it goes against what everyone else is doing, or she’s mildly disrespectful. That student in your class who is constantly snubbing the teacher, snorting when he gives assignments, and rolling her eyes when he reads passages aloud from your vocabulary textbook? Insolent, definitely insolent. There might be another student who adorns her school uniform with pins and ribbons, cuts her hair shorter than the dress code allows, and rolls her socks down. This student is also insolent, in the sense that she defies the rules.
Vocabulary lists containing insolent
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 3
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List 5
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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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.
All would be well for the heroic striver but for the insolent judgments of “editors, curators, connoisseurs, critics, bosses, talent agents, reviewers, etc.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
Be insolent, break the rules, don’t doubt your instincts and buy your freedom by working on the cheap.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 29, 2025
Fans were momentarily disappointed, but nothing could detract from the insolent, messy glory of tracks like Club Classics or Sympathy Is A Knife.
From BBC • Jun. 28, 2025
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected the allegations of a cover-up, telling reporters these are “absolutely unfounded, insolent accusations about the head of the Russian state.”
From Seattle Times • Feb. 22, 2024
One of the hooded figures looked up as I came amongst them, and I saw a strange face, coarse-featured, heavy, with insolent eyes watching me.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
