impertinent

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ɪmˈpɜː.tɪ.nənt/, SAMPA: /Im"p3:.tI.nənt/
• (US) IPA: /ɪmˈpɝʔ.nənt/, SAMPA: /Imp3`?n@nt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

impertinent (comparative more impertinent, superlative most impertinent)

1. insolent, ill-mannered
2. irrelevant (opposite of pertinent)

Usage notes

Although, historically, definition 2 was the original (derived from the French below) usage; meaning gradually changed to definition 1. More recently general usage has come to, once again, incorporate definition 2. As many older speakers will consider definition 2 incorrect, avoiding the word altogether may be advisable. The construction "not pertinent" is one possible alternative.

Synonyms

• See also Wikisaurus:cheeky

Translations

insolent, ill-mannered

Czech: nestydatý (cs) m., drzý (cs) m. Dutch: impertinent (nl) German: unverschämt (de) Hungarian: szemtelen (hu)

Polish: impertynent (pl) m. Russian: дерзкий (ru) (dérzkij), нахальный (ru) (naxál'nyj), наглый (ru) (náglyj) Spanish: impertinente (es), maleducado (es) Swedish: uppstudsig (sv), oförskämd (sv), näsvis (sv), impertinent (sv)

irrelevant

Bulgarian: неуместен, неподходящ (bg) Czech: nemístný (cs) m. Hungarian: lényegtelen (hu) Polish: niestosowny m., niemający związku m.

Russian: неуместный (ru) (neuméstnyj), неподходящий (ru) (nepodxodjáščij), неотносящийся (ru) (neotnosjáščijsja) Swedish: ovidkommande (sv), irrelevant (sv)

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Dutch

Adjective

impertinent (comparative impertinenter, superlative impertinentst)

1. insolent, ill-mannered

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French

Pronunciation

• Audio (Paris)

  (file)

Adjective

impertinent m. (f. impertinente, m. plural impertinents, f. plural impertinentes)

1. irrelevant

Antonyms

• pertinent

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German

Adjective

impertinent (comparative impertinenter, superlative am impertinentesten)

1. insolent, ill-mannered

Related terms

• Impertinenz