restive

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(rĕs'tĭv) pronunciation
adj.
  1. Uneasily impatient under restriction, opposition, criticism, or delay.
  2. Resisting control; difficult to control.
  3. Refusing to move. Used of a horse or other animal.

[Middle English restif, stationary, from Old French, from rester, to remain, from Latin restāre, to keep back : re-, re- + stāre, to stand.]

restively res'tive·ly adv.
restiveness res'tive·ness n.

USAGE NOTE   Restive is properly applied to a feeling of impatience or uneasiness induced by external coercion or restriction, and is not a general synonym for restless: The government has done nothing to ease export restrictions, and domestic manufacturers are growing restive (not restless). The atmosphere in the office was congenial, but after five years I began to grow restless (not restive).


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Despite its form, restive is close in meaning to restless, but conveys a stronger implication of disruptive consequences:
It's no surprise, then, when she turns up a little late..., not tardy enough to be really rude but sufficient to put an already restive audience in a really bad mood—Guardian, 2004.
It is also used in the special context of a horse that refuses to move forwards.

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adjective

    Feeling or exhibiting nervous tension: edgy, fidgety, jittery, jumpy, nervous, restless, skittish, tense, twitchy. Slang uptight. Idioms: a bundle of nerves, all wound up, on edge. See tighten/loosen.


adj

Definition: impatient, nervous
Antonyms: calm, collected, patient, relaxed

Random House Word Menu:

categories related to 'restive'

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Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to restive, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Restive.
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Dansk (Danish)
adj. - urolig, genstridig, stædig

Nederlands (Dutch)
rusteloos

Français (French)
adj. - énervé, rétif

Deutsch (German)
adj. - unruhig, störrisch

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - ατίθασος, δύστροπος, νευρικός, ανήσυχος

Italiano (Italian)
irrequieto, recalcitrante, restio, caparbio, indocile, cocciuto, indisciplinato

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - rebelde, irrequieto, nervoso

Русский (Russian)
строптивый, неуправляемый

Español (Spanish)
adj. - intranquilo, inquieto

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - istadig, bångstyrig, rastlös

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
不愿向前走的, 难驾御的, 倔强的

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 不願向前走的, 難駕禦的, 倔強的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 나아가기를 싫어하는, 다루기 힘드는, 들떠 있는

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 反抗的な, 落ち着きのない

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) ضجر, متململ, شموس,‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮לא שקט, עצבני, מרדני, סורר, לא מציית, חסר מנוח‬


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