intransigent

or in·tran·si·geant

[in-tran-si-juh nt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR intransigent ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

refusing to agree or compromise; uncompromising; inflexible.

noun

a person who refuses to agree or compromise, as in politics.

Origin of intransigent

1875–80; < Spanish intransigente, equivalent to in- in-³ + transigente (present participle of transigir to compromise) < Latin trānsigent- (stem of trānsigēns, present participle of trānsigere to come to an agreement); see transact

Related formsin·tran·si·gence, in·tran·si·gen·cy, nounin·tran·si·gent·ly, adverb

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

Related Words for intransigent

resolute, inflexible, adamant, obstinate, stubborn, tenacious

Examples from the Web for intransigent

Contemporary Examples of intransigent

He becomes angry, intransigent, furiously scribbling notes; Chaz meets determination with determination.
My Friend, Roger Ebert: Pulitzer Prize Winner Tom Shales on the Moving Documentary ‘Life Itself’
Tom Shales
July 6, 2014
If the deal fell through, “ the rest of the world would see Iran as the intransigent ones, not us.”
Hillary Woos the Jews
David Freedlander
March 20, 2014
Secondly, U.S. Secretary of State Kerry has recently pushed the Arab League towards flexing its intransigent position on borders.
The Arab Peace Initiative Makes Its Way to the Knesset
Tal Harris
May 20, 2013
And why is it that the Republicans can be so intransigent and Barack Obama gets blamed?
Bob Woodward and the Rules of Washington Morality
Michael Tomasky
March 3, 2013
But on the subject of marriage, Motilal was intransigent: his son would have to endure an arranged match.
Hold Onto Your Penis
David Frum, Justin Green
November 29, 2012

Historical Examples of intransigent

Neither Giovanni nor his wife were of the absolutely "intransigent" way of thinking.
Don Orsino
F. Marion Crawford
Thus religion acquires a meaning and a reasonableness that the most intransigent rationalist cannot misunderstand.
The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life
Emile Durkheim
Intransigent, in-tran′si-jent, adj. refusing to come to any understanding, irreconcilable.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M)
Various
The most intransigent of modern revolutionaries might learn a trick or two from this sacred poet.
Visions and Revisions
John Cowper Powys
It doesn't bother you, my getting your help and then not protecting you from these intransigent tribesmen?
The Barbarians
John Sentry

British Dictionary definitions for intransigent

intransigent

adjective

not willing to compromise; obstinately maintaining an attitude

noun Also: in'transigentist

an intransigent person, esp in politics

Derived Formsintransigence or intransigency, nounintransigently, adverb

Word Origin for intransigent

C19: from Spanish los intransigentes the uncompromising (ones), a name adopted by certain political extremists, from in- 1 + transigir to compromise, from Latin transigere to settle; see transact

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 intransigent

adj.

1881, from French intransigeant, from Spanish los intransigentes, literally "those not coming to agreement," name for extreme republican party in the Spanish Cortes 1873-4, from in- "not" (see in- (1)) + transigente "compromising," from Latin transigentem (nominative transigens), present participle of transigere "come to an agreement, accomplish, to carry through" (see transaction). Acquired its generalized sense in French.