refractory

Meaning

Adj

1. Obstinate and unruly; strongly opposed to something.
2. Not affected by great heat.
3. Resistant to treatment; not responding adequately to therapy.
4. Incapable of registering a reaction or stimulus.

Noun

1. A material or piece of material, such as a brick, that has a very high melting point.
2. A plant or factory that produces such material.

Synonyms

stubborn

obstinate

unruly

recalcitrant

intractable

disobedient

heat-resistant

perverse

fireproof

unmanageable

rebellious

pertinacious

insubordinate

willful

infusible

resistant

tenacious

stiff-necked

contumacious

fractious

furnace lining

dogged

hot-tempered

bullet-headed

heatproof

headstrong

disinclined

hardy

immune

impracticable

hard-boiled

delinquent

bulldog

arrogant

grudging

froward

cross-grained

mulish

material

loath

fireproofing

obdurate

besetting

obstinately

obstreperous

opinionated

persevering

persistent

irreconcilable

fire-proof

Translations

réfractaire

refrattario

refractario

refratário

δύστηκτος

hartnäckig

ostinato

opiniâtre

aufsässig

ανυπότακτος

πυρίμαχος

feuerfest

refractari

widerspenstig

refraktär

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ɹɪˈfɹæk.təɹ.i/

Etymology

From Latin refractārius (“obstinate”), from refractus, past participle of refringere (“to break up”). Originally refractary, refractarie, but reanalysed after other adjectives in -ory.