insolent

CEFRC1

/ˈɪn.sə.lənt/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Rude and disrespectful, especially toward someone older or more powerful.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    A person who is insolent.

Examples

  • I can't do with him and his insolent ways.

  • These bank employees seem so politely insolent lately. I wonder what's behind it.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
3
Parts of speech
1
Citations
3
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meaning

  1. Insulting in manner or words, particularly in an arrogant or insubordinate manner.

More examples

In context

  • Near-synonyms: arrogant, bold, cocky; see also Thesaurus:cheeky

  • Near-synonyms: insubordinate, offensive; see also Thesaurus:arrogant

  • insolent behaviour

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The blank remark from the employee got him a warning from the boss.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

PIE word *swé From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin īnsolēns (“unaccustomed, unwanted, unusual, immoderate, excessive, arrogant, insolent”), from in- (privative prefix) + solēns, present participle of solēre (“to be accustomed, to be wont”).