GRE Words for Stubbornness: Etymology and Memory Hooks

The GRE loves words that mean "unwilling to change." Learning them as one family makes each easier to recall, and it prepares you for Sentence Equivalence, where two of them often form the synonym pair.

Obdurate (hardened against persuasion; unmoved). From Latin obdurare, "to harden," from ob- + durus, "hard" (the same durus in "durable" and "endure"). Hook: an obdurate person has a heart that has gone hard and durable — nothing gets through.

Obstinate (stubbornly refusing to change one's mind). From Latin obstinare, "to persist," built on a sense of standing firm. Hook: an obstinate person obstructs every attempt to move them.

Intractable (not easily controlled or persuaded; hard to manage). From Latin in- (not) + tractare, "to handle, drag" (as in "tractor," which drags). Hook: you cannot drag an intractable person anywhere they do not want to go.

Intransigent (refusing to compromise; uncompromising). From Latin in- (not) + transigere, "to come to an agreement." Hook: an intransigent negotiator will not transition to any agreement.

Recalcitrant (resisting authority or control; defiant). From Latin recalcitrare, "to kick back," from calx, "heel" — originally describing a mule kicking back its heels. Hook: a recalcitrant mule kicks back rather than obeys.

Pertinacious (holding firmly to a purpose; stubbornly persistent). From Latin pertinax, from per- (thoroughly) + tenax, "holding fast" (the tenax in "tenacious"). Hook: pertinacious is tenacious turned all the way up.

A typical Sentence Equivalence blank: "Despite mounting evidence, the board remained ___ , refusing even to discuss the proposed reforms." Both "intransigent" and "obdurate" complete it with the same meaning — exactly the synonym pair the format rewards.

Verbloom drills these words inside real sentences and groups them by theme, so the contrast between unyielding and flexible sticks instead of fading like an isolated flashcard.