| Main Entry: | |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | stubborn |
| Synonyms: | astute, bullheaded, cool, hang tough, hard, hard-boiled, hard-nosed, headstrong, intractable, level-headed, locked in, mulish, obstinate, pertinacious, perverse, pigheaded, practical, pragmatic, rational, realistic, resolute, sensible, shrewd, sober, stand pat, tough, tough nut, unsentimental, unyielding, willful |
| Antonyms: | yielding |
| Main Entry: | dogged |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | determined, persistent |
| Synonyms: | adamant, bullheaded, firm, hanging tough, hard-nosed, hardheaded, indefatigable, inexorable, inflexible, insistent, mulish, obdurate, obstinate, perseverant, perseverative, persevering, pertinacious, pigheaded, relentless, resolute, rigid, single-minded, staunch, steadfast, steady, stubborn, tenacious, tough nut, unbending, unflagging, unshakable, unyielding |
| Antonyms: | indifferent, irresolute, undetermined, yielding |
| Main Entry: | down-to-earth |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | reasonable, practical |
| Synonyms: | common, commonsense, easy, hard, hardboiled, hardheaded, matter-of-fact, mundane, no-nonsense, plainspoken, pragmatic, rational, realistic, sane, sensible, sober, unfantastic, unidealistic, unsentimental |
| Antonyms: | excitable, excited, impractical, unreasonable, unsensible |
| Main Entry: | mulish |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | obstinate |
| Synonyms: | adamant, bullheaded, dead set on, dogged, firm, hardheaded, headstrong, immovable, inflexible, intractable, obdurate, opinionated, persistent, pigheaded, recalcitrant, relentless, single-minded, steadfast, strong-minded, stubborn, tenacious |
| Main Entry: | pragmatic |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | sensible |
| Synonyms: | businesslike, commonsensical, down-to-earth, efficient, hard, hard-boiled, hardheaded, logical, matter-of-fact, practical, realistic, sober, unidealistic, utilitarian |
| Notes: | empirical describes results determined by experiment and observed behavior or facts; theoretical describes results that are based on guesswork or hypothesis - and pragmatic is contrasted with theoretical on the grounds that the former proceeds from what is demonstrably practical, the latter from conjecture practical applies when what is in question is the conduct of affairs, whereas pragmatic applies when the question is the planning with respect to these affairs; practical is anything that can be done and is worth doing, while practicable is anything that can be done - worthwhile or not |
| Antonyms: | idealistic, unreasonable |
| Main Entry: | stern |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | serious, authoritarian |
| Synonyms: | ascetic, astringent, austere, bitter, bullheaded, by the book, cruel, disciplinary, dyed-in-the-wool, flinty, forbidding, frowning, grim, hang-tough, hard, hard-boiled, hard-core, hard-line, hard-nosed, hard-shell, hardheaded, harsh, implacable, inexorable, inflexible, mortified, mulish, relentless, rigid, rigorous, rough, severe, steely, stiff-necked, strict, stubborn, tough, unrelenting, unsparing, unyielding |
| Antonyms: | cheerful, funny, lenient, light, smiling, tolerant |
| Main Entry: | stiff |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | formal, standoffish |
| Synonyms: | angular, artificial, austere, ceremonious, cold, constrained, forced, hardheaded, headstrong, inflexible, intractable, labored, mannered, obstinate, pertinacious, pompous, priggish, prim, punctilious, relentless, starchy, stilted, strong, stubborn, uneasy, ungainly, ungraceful, unnatural, unrelaxed, unrelenting, wooden |
| Antonyms: | casual, graceful, informal |
| Main Entry: | stubborn |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | obstinate, unyielding |
| Synonyms: | adamant, balky, bullheaded, cantankerous, contumacious, cussed, determined, dogged, firm, fixed, hardheaded, headstrong, inexorable, inflexible, insubordinate, intractable, mulish, obdurate, opinionated, ornery*, persevering, persistent, pertinacious, perverse, pigheaded, rebellious, recalcitrant, refractory, relentless, rigid, self-willed, set in one's ways, single-minded, steadfast, stiff-necked, tenacious, tough, unbending, unmanageable, unreasonable, unshakable, untoward, willful |
| Antonyms: | broad-minded, complacent, compliant, giving, willing, yielding |
| Main Entry: | unyielding |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | steadfast, resolute |
| Synonyms: | adamant, dead set on, determined, firm, fixed, hard, hard-core, hard-line, hard-nosed, hardheaded, headstrong*, immalleable, immovable, implacable, impliable, inexorable, inflexible, intractable, locked in, merciless, mulish, obdurate, obstinate, pertinacious, pigheaded, refractory, relentless, rigid, ruthless, single-minded, solid, staunch, stiff, stiff-necked, stubborn, tough, unbending, uncompliant, uncompromising, unmovable, unrelenting, unswayable, unwavering |
| Antonyms: | flexible, irresolute, surrendering, yielding |