What is another word for refractory?
Synonyms for refractory
rɪˈfræk tə rire·frac·to·ry
This thesaurus page includes all potential synonyms, words with the same meaning and similar terms for the word refractory.
Wiktionary
English Synonyms and Antonyms
refractory
The headstrong person is not to be stopped in his own course of action, while the obstinate and stubborn is not to be driven to another's way. The headstrong act; the obstinate and stubborn may simply refuse to stir. The most amiable person may be obstinate on some one point; the stubborn person is for the most part habitually so; we speak of obstinate determination, stubborn resistance. Stubborn is the term most frequently applied to the lower animals and inanimate things. Refractory implies more activity of resistance; the stubborn horse balks; the refractory animal plunges, rears, and kicks; metals that resist ordinary processes of reduction are termed refractory. One is obdurate who adheres to his purpose in spite of appeals that would move any tender-hearted or right-minded person. Contumacious refers to a proud and insolent defiance of authority, as of the summons of a court. Pertinacious demand is contrasted with obstinate refusal. The unyielding conduct which we approve we call decided, firm, inflexible, resolute; that which we condemn we are apt to term headstrong, obstinate, stubborn. Compare PERVERSE.
Synonyms:
contumacious, decided, determined, dogged, firm, fixed, headstrong, heady, immovable, indomitable, inflexible, intractable, mulish, obdurate, obstinate, opinionated, persistent, pertinacious, resolute, resolved, stubborn, unconquerable, unflinching, unyieldingAntonyms:
amenable, complaisant, compliant, docile, dutiful, gentle, irresolute, obedient, pliable, pliant, submissive, teachable, tractable, undecided, wavering, yielding
Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms
refractory
Synonyms:
perverse, contumacious, stubborn, unruly, obstinate, unmanageable, mutinous, rebellious, recalcitrantAntonyms:
obedient, docile, amenable, manageable
Princeton's WordNet
furnace lining, refractoryadjective
lining consisting of material with a high melting point; used to line the inside walls of a furnace
Synonyms:
furnace liningAntonyms:
obedient, tractable, manipulable, responsiverefractory, stubbornadjective
not responding to treatment
"a stubborn infection"; "a refractory case of acne"; "stubborn rust stains"
Synonyms:
recalcitrant, fractious, obstinate, stubborn, unregenerateAntonyms:
manipulable, tractable, obedient, responsiverefractoryadjective
temporarily unresponsive or not fully responsive to nervous or sexual stimuli
"the refractory period of a muscle fiber"
Synonyms:
recalcitrant, fractious, stubbornAntonyms:
tractable, responsive, obedient, manipulablefractious, refractory, recalcitrantadjective
stubbornly resistant to authority or control
"a fractious animal that would not submit to the harness"; "a refractory child"
Synonyms:
scratchy, techy, nettlesome, cranky, peevish, recalcitrant, pettish, irritable, petulant, tetchy, testy, stubborn, peckish, fractiousAntonyms:
tractable, obedient, responsive, manipulable
Dictionary of English Synonymes
refractoryadjective
Synonyms:
stubborn, obstinate, stiff, perverse, dogged, mulish, heady, headstrong, cross-grained, intractable, unyielding, contumacious, disobedient, unruly, pig-headed, ungovernable, cantankerous
Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated Words
refractoryadjective
Synonyms:
unruly
PPDB, the paraphrase database
List of paraphrases for "refractory":
refractories, fire-resisting, resistant, intractable, fire-resistant, refractive, reluctant
Usage in printed sourcesFrom:
- [["1520","1"],["1575","1"],["1642","1"],["1643","1"],["1644","1"],["1645","1"],["1648","1"],["1649","1"],["1650","1"],["1653","1"],["1654","1"],["1655","4"],["1656","3"],["1657","1"],["1658","2"],["1659","13"],["1665","1"],["1668","3"],["1669","1"],["1670","4"],["1672","1"],["1673","1"],["1676","4"],["1677","1"],["1678","2"],["1679","1"],["1680","1"],["1681","5"],["1682","4"],["1683","6"],["1684","9"],["1685","5"],["1686","2"],["1688","1"],["1689","1"],["1690","1"],["1692","7"],["1693","2"],["1694","2"],["1696","1"],["1697","1"],["1698","9"],["1699","3"],["1700","5"],["1701","8"],["1702","1"],["1703","12"],["1704","6"],["1705","13"],["1706","4"],["1707","4"],["1708","6"],["1709","3"],["1710","6"],["1711","7"],["1712","2"],["1713","8"],["1714","9"],["1715","6"],["1716","15"],["1717","11"],["1718","2"],["1719","10"],["1720","17"],["1721","9"],["1722","19"],["1723","12"],["1724","7"],["1725","9"],["1726","16"],["1727","16"],["1728","13"],["1729","17"],["1730","17"],["1731","16"],["1732","22"],["1733","2"],["1734","16"],["1735","38"],["1736","7"],["1737","22"],["1738","18"],["1739","13"],["1740","8"],["1741","161"],["1742","11"],["1743","3"],["1744","21"],["1745","11"],["1746","6"],["1747","34"],["1748","19"],["1749","10"],["1750","52"],["1751","50"],["1752","42"],["1753","40"],["1754","36"],["1755","77"],["1756","16"],["1757","37"],["1758","75"],["1759","66"],["1760","20"],["1761","47"],["1762","32"],["1763","98"],["1764","141"],["1765","46"],["1766","69"],["1767","50"],["1768","72"],["1769","66"],["1770","83"],["1771","103"],["1772","72"],["1773","188"],["1774","72"],["1775","149"],["1776","131"],["1777","137"],["1778","91"],["1779","59"],["1780","53"],["1781","69"],["1782","103"],["1783","72"],["1784","145"],["1785","98"],["1786","159"],["1787","128"],["1788","240"],["1789","372"],["1790","193"],["1791","141"],["1792","177"],["1793","178"],["1794","134"],["1795","261"],["1796","203"],["1797","180"],["1798","201"],["1799","147"],["1800","358"],["1801","313"],["1802","344"],["1803","569"],["1804","479"],["1805","508"],["1806","364"],["1807","796"],["1808","315"],["1809","482"],["1810","678"],["1811","708"],["1812","655"],["1813","545"],["1814","489"],["1815","463"],["1816","563"],["1817","697"],["1818","755"],["1819","697"],["1820","1012"],["1821","764"],["1822","1184"],["1823","990"],["1824","1077"],["1825","1216"],["1826","1173"],["1827","1107"],["1828","1044"],["1829","1042"],["1830","1402"],["1831","1215"],["1832","1049"],["1833","1022"],["1834","1233"],["1835","1231"],["1836","1542"],["1837","1120"],["1838","1426"],["1839","1593"],["1840","1494"],["1841","1394"],["1842","1070"],["1843","1452"],["1844","1311"],["1845","1588"],["1846","1856"],["1847","1664"],["1848","1761"],["1849","2270"],["1850","1922"],["1851","2086"],["1852","2057"],["1853","2389"],["1854","2761"],["1855","2065"],["1856","2509"],["1857","2006"],["1858","2263"],["1859","1960"],["1860","2044"],["1861","1837"],["1862","1242"],["1863","1384"],["1864","1526"],["1865","1621"],["1866","1656"],["1867","1686"],["1868","1728"],["1869","2017"],["1870","1743"],["1871","1414"],["1872","1679"],["1873","1519"],["1874","1666"],["1875","1920"],["1876","1825"],["1877","1872"],["1878","1693"],["1879","1787"],["1880","2175"],["1881","1975"],["1882","2181"],["1883","2277"],["1884","2303"],["1885","2088"],["1886","1690"],["1887","2326"],["1888","1954"],["1889","2185"],["1890","2126"],["1891","2217"],["1892","2215"],["1893","2121"],["1894","2462"],["1895","2748"],["1896","2597"],["1897","2854"],["1898","2994"],["1899","2837"],["1900","3774"],["1901","3480"],["1902","3904"],["1903","3494"],["1904","3816"],["1905","3840"],["1906","4240"],["1907","4380"],["1908","4297"],["1909","2750"],["1910","4251"],["1911","3810"],["1912","4916"],["1913","3682"],["1914","3966"],["1915","3197"],["1916","2519"],["1917","3889"],["1918","3004"],["1919","2756"],["1920","3756"],["1921","3886"],["1922","3620"],["1923","3412"],["1924","4508"],["1925","3082"],["1926","3156"],["1927","3812"],["1928","3430"],["1929","2885"],["1930","5162"],["1931","3513"],["1932","2814"],["1933","2971"],["1934","3016"],["1935","3088"],["1936","3041"],["1937","3548"],["1938","3869"],["1939","3360"],["1940","4094"],["1941","3302"],["1942","4227"],["1943","2232"],["1944","2579"],["1945","2874"],["1946","3801"],["1947","4111"],["1948","3997"],["1949","5763"],["1950","5288"],["1951","4642"],["1952","5174"],["1953","4988"],["1954","5279"],["1955","6183"],["1956","5976"],["1957","5196"],["1958","4825"],["1959","6848"],["1960","6872"],["1961","10183"],["1962","8532"],["1963","10200"],["1964","9175"],["1965","10787"],["1966","9583"],["1967","10540"],["1968","12229"],["1969","10551"],["1970","12361"],["1971","13761"],["1972","11022"],["1973","11436"],["1974","11034"],["1975","11385"],["1976","11749"],["1977","11675"],["1978","11379"],["1979","12568"],["1980","13598"],["1981","13104"],["1982","14283"],["1983","16029"],["1984","17232"],["1985","15853"],["1986","19347"],["1987","16265"],["1988","17298"],["1989","20572"],["1990","21671"],["1991","17842"],["1992","24579"],["1993","18455"],["1994","19825"],["1995","22643"],["1996","21545"],["1997","23452"],["1998","23835"],["1999","22173"],["2000","30416"],["2001","31198"],["2002","32707"],["2003","34600"],["2004","39944"],["2005","39222"],["2006","41677"],["2007","40039"],["2008","46590"]]
Words popularity by usage frequency
| ranking | word | |
|---|---|---|
| #1672 | fixed | |
| #1854 | firm | |
| #2328 | determined | |
| #2414 | decided | |
| #5709 | resistant | |
| #5955 | resolved | |
| #6811 | contrary | |
| #9645 | persistent | |
| #14720 | reluctant | |
| #24054 | stubborn | |
| #26620 | irritable | |
| #27763 | refractory | |
| #27800 | refractive | |
| #30182 | cranky | |
| #31554 | perverse | |
| #33175 | rebellious | |
| #39714 | unruly | |
| #42074 | inflexible | |
| #42291 | opinionated | |
| #42813 | heady | |
| #42831 | intractable | |
| #43680 | resolute | |
| #49224 | immovable | |
| #50489 | dogged | |
| #59577 | scratchy | |
| #64747 | unmanageable | |
| #66176 | obstinate | |
| #66995 | headstrong | |
| #70249 | recalcitrant | |
| #70924 | techy | |
| #72731 | indomitable | |
| #74214 | testy | |
| #77339 | unflinching | |
| #77553 | unyielding | |
| #78674 | refractories | |
| #103649 | petulant | |
| #111963 | fractious | |
| #112226 | peevish | |
| #139798 | unconquerable | |
| #164509 | obdurate | |
| #169992 | unregenerate | |
| #183607 | mutinous | |
| #282433 | contumacious | |
| #287350 | peckish | |
| #323849 | tetchy |
Translations for refractory
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- عنيدArabic
- refraktærDanish
- δυσκολογιάτρευτος, δυσίατος, δύστηκτος, ανυπότακτος, πυρίμαχοςGreek
- refractarioEsperanto
- refractarioSpanish
- نسوزPersian
- refraktaarinen, itsepintainen, itsepäinen, kuumuudenkestävä, refraktorinen, omapäinen, tulenkestäväFinnish
- réfractaireFrench
- tahan panasIndonesian
- refrattaria, refrattarioItalian
- עַקשָׁןHebrew
- tīhoi, tīhoihoiMāori
- halsstarrig, weerbarstigDutch
- ildfastNorwegian
- opornyPolish
- refratárioPortuguese
- огнеупорныйRussian
- tvrdokoran, vatrootporan, refrakteranSerbo-Croatian
- motspänstig, eldfastSwedish
- 耐火Chinese
Get even more translations for refractory »
Translation
Find a translation for the refractory synonym in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Citation
Use the citation below to add these synonyms to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"refractory." Synonyms.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 23 Jan. 2025. <https://www.synonyms.com/synonym/refractory>.
Discuss these refractory synonyms with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In