restive

adjective

res·​tive ˈre-stiv 

1

: stubbornly resisting control : balky

2

: marked by impatience or uneasiness : fidgety

restively adverb

restiveness noun

Did you know?

Restive ultimately comes from the Anglo-French word rester, meaning "to stop, resist, or remain." In its earliest use, restive meant "sluggish" or "inactive," though this sense is no longer in use. Another early sense was "stubborn, obstinate." Specifically, restive often referred to horses that refused to do as commanded. This general application to unruly horses may have influenced the development of the "fidgety, impatient" sense of restive. Some usage commentators have objected to this newer sense, but it has been in use for well over a century, and is now the more common of the uses.

Synonyms

• balky
• contrary
• contumacious
• defiant
• disobedient
• froward
• incompliant
• insubordinate
• intractable
• obstreperous
• rebel
• rebellious
• recalcitrant
• recusant
• refractory
• ungovernable
• unruly
• untoward
• wayward
• willful
• wilful

Choose the Right Synonym for restive

contrary, perverse, restive, balky, wayward mean inclined to resist authority or control.

contrary implies a temperamental unwillingness to accept orders or advice.

a contrary child

perverse may imply wrongheaded, determined, or cranky opposition to what is reasonable or normal.

a perverse, intractable critic

restive suggests unwillingness or inability to submit to discipline or follow orders.

tired soldiers growing restive

balky suggests a refusing to proceed in a desired direction or course of action.

a balky witness

wayward suggests strong-willed capriciousness and irregularity in behavior.

a school for wayward youths

Examples of restive in a Sentence

the restive horse threw its head and refused to move when the rider urged it forward

spent a restive night worrying about the next day's exam

Recent Examples on the Web

But over the years, eradication programs in Laos and China combined with the U.S. War on Terror saw opium production shift to restive Afghanistan. —TIME, 21 Mar. 2024

But rank-and-file members have grown increasingly restive in recent years, voting overwhelmingly in favor of authorizing a strike in October 2021. —Christi Carras, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2024

Both are restive, mineral-rich, and largely underdeveloped. —Asif Shahzad and Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Jan. 2024

The fighting quickly spread across the African country, especially urban areas but also the restive western Darfur region, and has so far killed at least 12,000 people and sent over 8 million fleeing from their homes. —Deng MacHol, Quartz, 28 Feb. 2024

The exercise, the first for the island city of Ishigaki — closer to China and Taiwan than to the Japanese mainland — is being repeated across the country as increasingly restive neighbors heighten concerns about war. —Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024

The fighting quickly spread across the African country, especially urban areas but also the restive western Darfur region, and has so far killed at least 12,000 people and sent over 8 million fleeing their homes, the report said. —Jamey Keaten, The Denver Post, 23 Feb. 2024

McHenry said Johnson is still adjusting to the difficulties of leading a small and restive GOP majority. —Major Garrett, CBS News, 21 Feb. 2024

There was a terrible attack in the restive province of Baluchistan on the eve of the election that killed 28 people. —Ayesha Jalal, The Conversation, 11 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English restyf, from Anglo-French restif, from rester to stop, resist, remain

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

restive

adjective

res·​tive ˈres-tiv 

1

: stubbornly fighting control : balky

a restive horse

2

: showing impatience or uneasiness : fidgety

the crowd grew restive

restively adverb

restiveness noun