stiff-necked

[ stif-nekt ]

adjective

1. having a stiff neck; having torticollis.
2. haughty and obstinate; refractory.

   Synonyms: pigheaded, willful, intractable, obstinate, stubborn

stiff-necked

adjective

1. haughtily stubborn or obstinate

Other Words From

• stiff·neck·ed·ly [stif, -, nek, -id-lee, -, nekt, -lee], adverb
• stiffnecked·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of stiff-necked¹

First recorded in 1520–30

Example Sentences

But like the Targaryens, the elves and men of “The Rings of Power,” are far too stiff-necked to make any sort of joke.

From Los Angeles Times

Bateman pointed to a gold frame with inlaid flowers, containing sketches of a mustachioed man in a tuxedo and a serious woman in a stiff-necked dress.

From Los Angeles Times

The elves, half or whole, in “Rings of Power” are a stiff-necked bunch, less otherworldly than socially repressed.

From Los Angeles Times

Watson is in a perpetual state of stiff-necked choler tinged with snobbery — “I am better educated, more wealthy and stronger than you are,” he tells Bea, who is unmoved.

From Los Angeles Times

Ms. Goldsmith described the Jews here as a “stiff-necked people,” borrowing a biblical phrase for stubbornness, and said they were not going anywhere.

From New York Times

Related Words

• adamant
• determined
• hard-line
• hard-nosed
• immovable
• implacable
• inflexible
• intractable
• merciless
• obstinate
• relentless
• rigid
• ruthless
• single-minded
• staunch
• stubborn
• uncompromising
• unrelenting
• unwavering