insubordinate
Americanadjective
-
not submitting to authority; disobedient.
an insubordinate soldier.
- Synonyms:
- insolent, defiant, refractory
-
not lower.
noun
adjective
-
not submissive to authority; disobedient or rebellious
-
not in a subordinate position or rank
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of insubordinate
First recorded in 1840–50; in- 3 + subordinate
Explanation
If you want to be insubordinate, go ahead and break the rules, ignore orders, and act like a disobedient rebel. Words that have similar meanings to insubordinate include "rebellious" and "mutinous." But while insubordinate people don't follow orders, rebellious folks openly defy them and mutinous groups try to overthrow the authority that created them. When baseball player Jackie Robinson objected to racial discrimination in the Army in the 1940s, he was accused of being insubordinate. He was court martialed, but found innocent and acquitted.
Vocabulary lists containing insubordinate
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Treasure Island
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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.
Insubordinate and often insufferable, he is assigned to recover a kidnaped British scientist held by criminals who contribute to the nation's "brain drain" by snatching and selling top scientific talent to foreign powers.
From Time Magazine Archive
Insubordinate to France it certainly is, and intemperate; turgid, too, as any youth of twenty could well make it.
From The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte Vol. I. (of IV.) by Sloane, William Milligan
Insubordinate native princes admitted only a nominal control over them.
From Outline of Universal History by Fisher, George Park
Insubordinate, in-sub-or′din-āt, adj. not subordinate or submissive: disobedient.—n.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various
Insubordinate applies to the disposition to resist and resent control as such; mutinous, to open defiance of authority, especially in the army, navy, or merchant marine.
From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin
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.
