insistent

I1N1S1I1S1T1E1N1T1
/ɪnˈsɪstənt/

adjective

Standing or resting on something.

Less commonScrabble 9

Meanings

adjectiveinsistent (comparative more insistent, superlative most insistent)

comparative more insistent · superlative most insistent

  1. obsoleteStanding or resting on something.
  2. Urgent in dwelling upon anything; persistent in urging or maintaining.
  3. Extorting attention or notice; coercively staring or prominent; vivid; intense.

    Hadadas roost in numbers among the trees in the leafier parts of Nairobi and their eponymous call is one of the more insistent elements of the dawn chorus in that part of the world, though they may be heard at any time of the day.

    2008, Nicholas Drayson, A Guide to the Birds of East Africa, page 24
  4. biologyStanding on end: specifically said of the hind toe of a bird when its base is inserted so high on the shank that only its tip touches the ground: correlated with incumbent.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiverepetitive and persistent

adjectivedemanding attention

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Latininsistens
  2. Englishinsistent

From Latin insistens, participle of insisto.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian настойчив
  • настойчив (nastojčiv)urgent
Czech neústupný, tvrdošíjný
  • neústupnýurgent
  • tvrdošíjnýurgent
  • vytrvalýurgent
  • neodbytnýurgent
Finnish hellittämätön, itsepintainen
  • hellittämätönurgent
  • itsepintainenurgent
Italian insistente
  • insistenteurgent
Māori nonoi
  • nonoiurgent
Russian настойчивый
  • настойчивый (nastojčivyj)urgent

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

insistent. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/insistent

MLA

“insistent.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/insistent. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “insistent,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/insistent.

Source: insistent on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.