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restive - 4 dictionary results
res⋅tive
[res-tiv] 
tɪv
–adjective
| 1. | impatient of control, restraint, or delay, as persons; restless; uneasy. |
| 2. | refractory; stubborn. |
| 3. | refusing to go forward; balky: a restive horse. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To restive
| res·tive (rěs'tĭv) adj.
[Middle English restif, stationary, from Old French, from rester, to remain, from Latin restāre, to keep back : re-, re- + stāre, to stand; see stā- in Indo-European roots.] res'tive·ly adv., 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). |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Restive
Rest"ive\ (r?st"?v), a. [OF. restif, F. r['e]tif, fr. L. restare to stay back, withstand, resist. See Rest remainder, and cf. Restiff.] . Unwilling to go on; obstinate in refusing to move forward; stubborn; drawing back. Restive or resty, drawing back, instead of going forward, as some horses do. --E. Philips (1658). The people remarked with awe and wonder that the beasts which were to drag him [Abraham Holmes] to the gallows became restive, and went back. --Macaulay. 2. Inactive; sluggish. [Obs.] --Sir T. Browne. 3. Impatient under coercion, chastisement, or opposition; refractory. 4. Uneasy; restless; averse to standing still; fidgeting about; -- applied especially to horses. --Trench. -- Rest"ive, adv. -- Rest"ive*ness, n.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : restive
Spanish:
inquieto; impaciente,
German:
unruhig,
Japanese:
落着かない
restive
c.1410, restyffe "not moving forward," from M.Fr. restif (fem. restive) "motionless," from rester "to remain" (see rest (2)). Sense of "unmanageable" (1687) evolved via notion of a horse refusing to go forward.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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