intransigent

English

WOTD – 19 April 2006

Alternative forms

• intransigeant

Etymology

Borrowed from French intransigeant, from Spanish intransigente, from Latin in- (“un-, not”) + trānsigēns, present participle of trānsigō (“to come to an understanding”), from trāns (“across”) +‎ agō (“to do”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt/, /ɪnˈtɹæn.zə.d͡ʒənt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: in‧tran‧si‧gent

Adjective

intransigent (comparative more intransigent, superlative most intransigent)

1. Unwilling to compromise or moderate a position; unreasonable; stubborn.

   Antonyms: moderate, reasonable, transigent (uncommon)

   Near-synonyms: intractable; see also Thesaurus:obstinate

   Don't waste your time trying to change his mind: he's completely intransigent.

   • 1966, H. Feigl, “Is Science Relevant to Theology?”, in Inquiries and Provocations: Selected Writings, published 2012, →ISBN:

     Since I have been asked to do this in very brief compass, the harsh tone and terse style of my presentation will make my contentions appear more dogmatic and intransigent than I should wish them to be.

   • 1970 August 31, John Berbers, “Nixon Aides Voice Integration Hope”, in The New York Times‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:

     Much of the new integration will come in the school districts that have been the most intransigent since the Supreme Court outlawed school segregation in its landmark 1954 decision.

     (Can we archive this URL?)

   • 1993, Leslie Bethell, Cuba: A Short History, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 27:

     On the Spanish side, the war increased the anti-Cuban animosity and distrust felt by the most intransigent peninsulares.

Derived terms

• intransigentist

Related terms

• intransigence
• intransigency
• intransigentism
• intransigently

Descendants

• → German: intransigent

Translations

unwilling to compromise or moderate a position, mad

• Bulgarian: непримирим (bg) (neprimirim), безкомпромисен (bg) (bezkompromisen)
• Catalan: intransigent (ca)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 唔妥協嘅 / 唔妥协嘅 (m⁴ to⁵ hip³ ge³), 唔讓步嘅 / 唔让步嘅 (m⁴ joeng⁶ bou⁶ ge³)

• Danish: uforsonlig, umedgørlig, genstridig
• Dutch: onverzettelijk (nl)
• Finnish: myöntymätön, jyrkkä (fi)
• French: intransigeant (fr), impitoyable (fr)
• German: kompromisslos (de), intransigent (de), unnachgiebig (de), hartleibig, unbeugsam (de), unversöhnlich (de), stur (de), unkooperativ
• Greek: αδιάλλακτος (el) (adiállaktos)
• Hebrew: בלתי מתפשר m (bilti mitpasher)
• Hungarian: hajthatatlan (hu), tántoríthatatlan (hu), intranzigens (hu)
• Icelandic: þrjóskur
• Māori: upoko mārō, whakaioio
• Persian: معاند (fa) (mo'âned)
• Polish: nieprzejednany (pl), nieustępliwy (pl), nieubłagany (pl)
• Portuguese: intransigente (pt)
• Russian: непрекло́нный (ru) m (nepreklónnyj), непримири́мый (ru) m (neprimirímyj)
• Serbo-Croatian: intransigentan (sh), beskompromisan (sh)
• Spanish: intransigente (es)
• Swedish: omedgörlig (sv)
• Ukrainian: непримире́нний (neprymyrénnyj), непримири́мий (neprymyrýmyj), безкомпромі́сний (uk) (bezkompromísnyj), непохи́тний (nepoxýtnyj)

Noun

intransigent (plural intransigents)

1. A person who is intransigent.

   Synonym: intransigentist

Translations

intransigent person

• Polish: uparciuch (pl) m pers, uparciucha f
• Spanish: intransigente (es)

Further reading

• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin Eli Smith, editors (1895–1910), “intransigent”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• “intransigent”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Catalan

Etymology

From in- +‎ transigent.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Adjective

intransigent m or f (masculine and feminine plural intransigents)

1. intransigent

Derived terms

• intransigència

Further reading

• “intransigent”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026

German

Etymology

Borrowed from English intransigent.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪntʁanziˈɡɛnt/

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

Adjective

intransigent (strong nominative masculine singular intransigenter, comparative intransigenter, superlative am intransigentesten)

1. (higher register) intransigent

   Synonyms: unbeugsam, unnachgiebig

   • 2001 April 28, Tilman von Rohden, “Kommt Rad, kommt Geld”, in Die Tageszeitung: taz‎^[2], Berlin: taz, die tageszeitung Verlagsgenossenschaft eG, →ISSN, archived from the original on 7 November 2022, page 36:

     Radfahrer sind konsumfeindlich und intransigent: Dem Kampf gegen ihr höchstes Hassobjekt, das Auto, unterstellen sie ihr Leben.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Declension

Positive forms of intransigent number & gender singular plural masculine feminine neuter predicative er ist intransigent sie ist intransigent es ist intransigent sie sind intransigent strong declension (without article) nominative intransigenter intransigente intransigentes intransigente genitive intransigenten intransigenter intransigenten intransigenter dative intransigentem intransigenter intransigentem intransigenten accusative intransigenten intransigente intransigentes intransigente weak declension (with definite article) nominative der intransigente die intransigente das intransigente die intransigenten genitive des intransigenten der intransigenten des intransigenten der intransigenten dative dem intransigenten der intransigenten dem intransigenten den intransigenten accusative den intransigenten die intransigente das intransigente die intransigenten mixed declension (with indefinite article) nominative ein intransigenter eine intransigente ein intransigentes (keine) intransigenten genitive eines intransigenten einer intransigenten eines intransigenten (keiner) intransigenten dative einem intransigenten einer intransigenten einem intransigenten (keinen) intransigenten accusative einen intransigenten eine intransigente ein intransigentes (keine) intransigenten Comparative forms of intransigent number & gender singular plural masculine feminine neuter predicative er ist intransigenter sie ist intransigenter es ist intransigenter sie sind intransigenter strong declension (without article) nominative intransigenterer intransigentere intransigenteres intransigentere genitive intransigenteren intransigenterer intransigenteren intransigenterer dative intransigenterem intransigenterer intransigenterem intransigenteren accusative intransigenteren intransigentere intransigenteres intransigentere weak declension (with definite article) nominative der intransigentere die intransigentere das intransigentere die intransigenteren genitive des intransigenteren der intransigenteren des intransigenteren der intransigenteren dative dem intransigenteren der intransigenteren dem intransigenteren den intransigenteren accusative den intransigenteren die intransigentere das intransigentere die intransigenteren mixed declension (with indefinite article) nominative ein intransigenterer eine intransigentere ein intransigenteres (keine) intransigenteren genitive eines intransigenteren einer intransigenteren eines intransigenteren (keiner) intransigenteren dative einem intransigenteren einer intransigenteren einem intransigenteren (keinen) intransigenteren accusative einen intransigenteren eine intransigentere ein intransigenteres (keine) intransigenteren Superlative forms of intransigent number & gender singular plural masculine feminine neuter predicative er ist am intransigentesten sie ist am intransigentesten es ist am intransigentesten sie sind am intransigentesten strong declension (without article) nominative intransigentester intransigenteste intransigentestes intransigenteste genitive intransigentesten intransigentester intransigentesten intransigentester dative intransigentestem intransigentester intransigentestem intransigentesten accusative intransigentesten intransigenteste intransigentestes intransigenteste weak declension (with definite article) nominative der intransigenteste die intransigenteste das intransigenteste die intransigentesten genitive des intransigentesten der intransigentesten des intransigentesten der intransigentesten dative dem intransigentesten der intransigentesten dem intransigentesten den intransigentesten accusative den intransigentesten die intransigenteste das intransigenteste die intransigentesten mixed declension (with indefinite article) nominative ein intransigentester eine intransigenteste ein intransigentestes (keine) intransigentesten genitive eines intransigentesten einer intransigentesten eines intransigentesten (keiner) intransigentesten dative einem intransigentesten einer intransigentesten einem intransigentesten (keinen) intransigentesten accusative einen intransigentesten eine intransigenteste ein intransigentestes (keine) intransigentesten

Related terms

• Intransigenz

Further reading

• “intransigent” in Duden online
• “intransigent”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎^[3] (in German)

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French intransigeant.

Adjective

intransigent m or n (feminine singular intransigentă, masculine plural intransigenți, feminine/neuter plural intransigente)

1. uncompromising (person)

Declension

Declension of intransigent

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	intransigent		intransigentă	intransigenți	intransigente
	definite	intransigentul		intransigenta	intransigenții	intransigentele
genitive- dative	indefinite	intransigent		intransigente	intransigenți	intransigente
	definite	intransigentului		intransigentei	intransigenților	intransigentelor