obstreperous

WOTD – 18 February 2007    

English

Etymology

First attested circa 17th century, from Latin obstreperus "clamorous, noisy," from obstrepere, "to make a noise against, oppose noisily," from ob-, "against" + strepere, "to noise."

Pronunciation

• (RP) IPA: /əbˈstrɛp.ər.əs/, /ɒbˈstrɛp.ər.əs/, X-SAMPA: /@b"str3:p.@r.@s/
• (US) IPA: /əbˈstrɛpərəs/, /ɑːbˈstrɛpərəs/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

obstreperous (comparative more obstreperous, superlative most obstreperous)

1. Attended by, or making, a loud and tumultuous noise; boisterous.

   The obstreperous mirth swiftly turned into yells of dismay.

2. Noisily and stubbornly defiant.

Synonyms

• (making a tumultuous noise): clamorous, noisy, vociferous
• (noisily defiant): unruly

Derived terms

• obstreperously
• obstreperousness
• stroppy

Translations

attended by, or making a loud and tumultuous noise

• Polish: hałaśliwy (pl) m

noisily and stubbornly defiant

• Polish: hałaśliwy m, niesforny m, zaczepny m

• Spanish: estrepitoso (es) m