Synonyms: Stubborn

There are plenty of words to describe people who stick to what they believe in, whether we agree with them or not! For more synonym lists, explore our Say What You Mean resources.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. adamant
    impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason
    She’d been adamant about staying ever since the talk of resettling started. The Underground Railroad: A Novel
    Adamant comes from the Greek word for "unbreakable." So if you're adamant that Taco Tuesday should be a national holiday, nobody is going to talk you out of that opinion. Fun fact: adamant comes from the same root as diamond, because that gem is famously hard.
  2. cantankerous
    stubbornly obstructive and unwilling to cooperate
    His friends when they played with him declared that he was not a cantankerous old man, but a really charming fellow. Leach, Henry
    Cantankerous sounds like cranky, and if you add in a bunch of stubborn you've nailed the meaning perfectly. It likely comes from the Middle English contak, meaning "quarreling."
  3. contumacious
    willfully obstinate; stubbornly disobedient
    I believe she was pronounced ‘contumacious’ by the inquisition, and put into prison, where she died from the severity of her treatment.” Marryat, Frederick
    Contumax means "insolent" or "stubborn" in Latin.
  4. dogged
    stubbornly unyielding
    She continued her dogged pursuit of Everest just the same. Into Thin Air
    Dogged can be pronounced two ways: as two distinct syllables, it means "stubbornly persistent," and as one syllable it means "followed," the way an escaped convict might be pursued by bloodhounds.
  5. headstrong
    habitually disposed to disobedience and opposition
    Am I really as bad-mannered, headstrong, stubborn, pushy, stupid, lazy, etc., etc., as the van Daans say I am? The Diary of a Young Girl
  6. inflexible
    not making concessions
    “Milo, I forbid you to fly any more combat missions,” Colonel Cathcart declared in a tone of stem and inflexible authority. Catch-22
  7. intractable
    difficult to manage or mold
    Confronted with an intractable problem, he was prepared to work at it harder and longer than most people and to be more receptive to unorthodox explanations. A Short History of Nearly Everything
  8. mulish
    unreasonably stubborn or rigid
    “Althea doesn’t mean to be obstinate; she’s just naturally mulish. But she keeps the wolves at bay, and we badly need her. We’ll wait here until she returns.” Hollow City
    Mules are famously stubborn animals, often refusing to obey human commands.
  9. obdurate
    stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing
    He’s painted as often being difficult and demanding, yet clearly this obdurate artistic vision was what produced such deeply singular music. The Guardian (Aug 21, 2020)
    Obdurate means "hard." It can describe a rock, or a pig-headed person who will not change their mind.
  10. obstinate
    refusing to change one's mind or ways; difficult to convince
    Your child will become more obstinate, more aggressive and more defiant. Washington Post (Jan 3, 2017)
  11. obstreperous
    noisily and stubbornly defiant
    A more obstreperous, cantankerous, and altogether unreasonable being than an opera singer it is hard to find in any other walk of life. Mapleson, James H.
    If you take obstinate and add a bunch of yelling, you've arrived at obstreperous. Obstrepere means "to oppose loudly" in Latin.
  12. ornery
    having a difficult and contrary disposition
    Sometimes I am as ornery and stubborn as an old donkey. Walk Two Moons
    Ornery describes someone who is cranky, stubborn, and generally uncooperative.
  13. persistent
    stubbornly unyielding
    Johnny saw redcoats going down in heaps, but one, more persistent than the others, a sergeant, still hung to his bridle. Johnny Tremain
  14. pertinacious
    stubbornly unyielding
    He was a good manager of men, and a steady, pertinacious, and shrewd negotiator. Dawson, Thomas C.
    Pertinax means "diligent" and "persevering" in Latin.
  15. rebellious
    resisting control or authority
    We shared other traits as well, alas: He was rebellious and resentful of authority, quick to rage at arbitrary power. Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho
  16. recalcitrant
    stubbornly resistant to authority or control
    Like a recalcitrant child, however, color in art refuses to be governed by any rules. History of Art, Volume 1
    Recalcitrare is a Latin verb meaning "to kick backward" like a horse does.
  17. relentless
    not willing or able to stop or yield
    I pressed onward, leaping from platform to platform, attacking in midair, dodging the relentless onslaught of blobs, skeletons, snakes, mummies, minotaurs, and yes, ninjas. Ready Player One: A Novel
    If you spend a two-hour car ride asking your parents every thirty seconds if you can stop for ice cream, that's relentless.
  18. rigid
    incapable of compromise or flexibility
    Traditionally, the social order was hard and rigid. Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
    Rigid, inflexible, and unyielding are all synonyms for unbending.
  19. steadfast
    marked by firm determination or resolution; not shakable
    “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial,” she preaches, her finger waving. Allegedly
  20. tenacious
    stubbornly unyielding
    Hugo would fling one into the wall, and the tenacious creature would stumble to its feet and wade back in for more. Fablehaven
    Tenacious means tough, impossible to budge. It comes from tenax, literally "holding fast" in Latin.
  21. unyielding
    stubbornly unwilling to give in
    He was brilliant and charming, but once fixed on a thing, he was as unyielding as a slab of Joliet limestone. The Devil in the White City
  22. willful
    habitually disposed to disobedience and opposition
    She was a willful child, with a sharp temper. Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith
Created on Sun Mar 22 14:19:33 EDT 2020 (updated Wed Mar 03 20:48:49 EST 2021)

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