Recalcitrant [Adjective]
Sentence: What the power to terminate an employee does give a company is a means to show the government that it has tried to obtain evidence of wrongdoing and took measures to punish those unwilling to cooperate. Adopting an aggressive approach with a recalcitrant employee has become even more important since the Justice Department announced a new policy in 2015 that conditions any credit for corporate cooperation on providing information about misconduct by individuals in the company. (Source: www.nytimes.com)
Meaning: Difficult to manage or deal with; Disobedient and having an uncooperative attitude towards discipline or authority
How To Remember?
“Calcify” means to make unchangeable or inflexible. It also refers to hardening something by depositing calcium salts. So the “-calci-” part of “Recalcitrant” should remind you of calcium which would in turn remind you of the word “Calcify“. And hardened criminals are disobedient, aren’t they? They do often have a problem with authority and have an uncooperative attitude towards it.
The Opposite?
Tractable. (Click here to check the meaning.)
For more words, click here!
Picture Credit: www.telegraph.co.uk
[Clearly, the Kingfisher does not have much regard for rules! Hence, the Kingfisher is? Yes, recalcitrant!]
Subscribe to the blog for whetting your vocabulary and communication skills!
Comment | Like | Share
Categories: Learning English
LEARNBOOK.ORG 