stub ‧ born /ˈstʌbən $ -ərn/ BrE AmE adjective
1 . determined not to change your mind, even when people think you are being unreasonable:
Why are you so stubborn?
I’ve got a very stubborn streak (=a tendency to be stubborn) .
Paul can be as stubborn as a mule (=very stubborn) .
2 . stubborn resistance/refusal/determination etc a very strong and determined refusal etc:
a stubborn refusal to face reality
3 . difficult to remove, deal with, or use SYN tough :
stubborn stains
—stubbornly adverb :
‘I don’t care,’ she said stubbornly.
—stubbornness noun [uncountable]
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ stubborn refusing to change your mind, even when people think you are wrong or are being unreasonable:
Dave can be really stubborn once he’s made up his mind.
|
a stubborn old man
▪ obstinate very stubborn, in way that is annoying and unreasonable:
I have never met anyone so obstinate.
|
his obstinate refusal to compromise
▪ pig-headed informal refusing to change your mind, even when people think that what you want to do is stupid:
I told her she was making a big mistake but she was too pig-headed to listen.
|
I wish you’d stop being so pig-headed!
▪ headstrong very determined to do what you want, often without thinking about the results of your actions – used especially about young people:
As a girl, she had been lively and headstrong.
|
the headstrong impulsiveness of youth
▪ wilful British English ( also willful American English ) doing what you want, even after you have been told to stop, or when you know that it is wrong – used especially about children:
He was a spoiled and wilful child, who always got his own way.
|
She was passionate and wilful – exactly the sort of creature a man ought to avoid.
▪ ornery American English behaving in an unreasonable and often angry way, especially by doing the opposite of what people want you to do:
an ornery kid
|
Teenagers can be ornery and rude.