adamantine

adjective

ad·​a·​man·​tine ˌa-də-ˈman-ˌtēn 

-ˌtīn,

-ˈman-tᵊn

1

: made of or having the quality of adamant

2

: rigidly firm : unyielding

adamantine discipline

3

: resembling the diamond in hardness or luster

Did you know?

The Greek and Latin word for the hardest imaginable substance, whether applied to a legendary stone or an actual substance, such as diamond, was adamas. Latin poets used the term figuratively for things lasting, firm, or unbending, and the adjective adamantinus was applied in similar contexts. The English noun adamant (meaning "an unbreakable or extremely hard substance") as well as the adjective adamant ("inflexible" or "unyielding") came from adamas. Adamantine, however—which has such figurative uses as "rigid," "firm," and "unyielding"—came from adamantinus. Adamas is also the source of diamond. Diamas, the Latin term for diamond, is an alteration of adamas.

Synonyms

• adamant
• bullheaded
• dogged
• hard
• hard-nosed
• hardened
• hardheaded
• headstrong
• immovable
• implacable
• inconvincible
• inflexible
• intransigent
• mulish
• obdurate
• obstinate
• opinionated
• ossified
• pat
• pertinacious
• perverse
• pigheaded
• self-opinionated
• self-willed
• stiff-necked
• stubborn
• unbending
• uncompromising
• unrelenting
• unyielding
• willful
• wilful

Examples of adamantine in a Sentence

the adamantine opposition of his parents to his marriage to a girl from a poor family

Recent Examples on the Web

Although Bush and Obama both flirted with what was once called entitlement reform, Trump and Biden now present themselves as adamantine defenders of Social Security and Medicare, each accusing the other of secretly aiming to cut those programs. —Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 19 Aug. 2024

This view is much in vogue today, casting China not as a country that responds to pressure and incentives but as an adamantine force incapable of reacting to external stimuli. —Julian Gewirtz, Foreign Affairs, 13 Oct. 2020

This poor little deer had to be sacrificed by your adamantine reviewer to show you how the new tool works. —PCMAG, 30 May 2024

At the Guggenheim Bilbao, at Glenstone, at SF MoMA and in St. Louis — in so many places around the world — Serra’s adamantine sculptures act on you. —Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 27 Mar. 2024

She is known for her aphoristic precision and intense, adamantine paragraphs. —Matthew Gavin Frank, Harper's Magazine, 21 Feb. 2022

So contrary to what Gordon suggests, effective teaching, as Weber saw it, involves much more than pitting students’ opinions against adamantine facts. —Peter E. Gordon, The New York Review of Books, 19 Nov. 2020

Davosites are defined by their adamantine belief in economic and social liberalism and their position at the top of various global organisations. —The Economist, 16 Nov. 2019

Every year The Rock is pre-painted a different color to prepare an adamantine canvas. —courant.com, 9 July 2019

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin adamantinus, borrowed from Greek adamántinos, derivative of adamant-, adámas adamant entry 2

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

adamantine

adjective

ad·​a·​man·​tine ˌad-ə-ˈman-ˌtēn 

-ˌtīn

1

: made of or having the quality of adamant

2

: adamant entry 2

Medical Definition

adamantine

adjective

ad·​a·​man·​tine ˌad-ə-ˈman-ˌtēn  -ˌtīn  -ˈmant-ᵊn 

: characterized by extreme hardness or luster