adamant
Americanadjective
-
utterly unyielding in attitude or opinion in spite of all appeals, urgings, etc.
- Synonyms:
- uncompromising, rigid, inflexible
-
too hard to cut, break, or pierce.
noun
-
any impenetrably or unyieldingly hard substance.
-
a legendary stone of impenetrable hardness, formerly sometimes identified with the diamond.
adjective
-
unshakable in purpose, determination, or opinion; unyielding
-
a less common word for adamantine
noun
-
any extremely hard or apparently unbreakable substance
-
a legendary stone said to be impenetrable, often identified with the diamond or loadstone
Other Word Forms
- adamance noun
- adamancy noun
- adamantly adverb
- unadamant adjective
Etymology
Origin of adamant
First recorded before 900; Middle English, from Old French adamaunt, from Latin adamant- (stem of adamas ) “hard metal (perhaps steel), diamond,” from Greek, equivalent to a- a- 6 + -damant- verbal adjective of damân “to tame, conquer”; replacing Old English athamans (from Medieval Latin ) and Middle English aymont, from Middle French aimant, from unattested Vulgar Latin adimant-, from Latin
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Maija was very adamant about really having conversations about understanding the Caribbean style and the Black experience through the Caribbean lens, which was really refreshing,” Garcia told The Times.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026
"I was adamant that there was a red scrum out lurking in the background that was going to bring me down," said Chessum.
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026
Mental health professionals are adamant that a skilled clinician can work with both sexes and that a therapist’s gender rarely determines outcome.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026
One of the siblings owes quite a bit of child support, which my parents have been adamant about not paying.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 18, 2026
Police were always so adamant about second offenses.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
