insubordinateadj.n.
/ɪnsəˈbɔːdɪnət/ A. adj. Not subordinate.
a. Not obedient to the orders of superiors; prone to insubordination.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > lack of subjection > [adjective] > not submissive to rightful authority
insubordinate1849
1849 R. Cobden Speeches 86 To keep down a very restless and insubordinate population; but why restless and insubordinate?
1864 Daily Tel. 23 Sept. A motley crew of insubordinate adventurers.
1897 ‘P. Warung’ Tales Old Regime 37 To be insubordinate was to commit the unpardonable sin.
b. Not subordinate in altitude; not inferior.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > vertical extent > lack of height > [adjective] > not lower
insubordinate1868
1868 H. H. Milman Ann. St. Paul's Cathedral 398 Those adjacent buildings soar to an insubordinate height.
B. n.
One who is insubordinate.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > lack of subjection > [noun] > insubordinate person
insubordinate1886
1886 F. H. Doyle Reminisc. 45 In managing his subordinates (insubordinates I should rather call them).
1896 Westm. Gaz. 25 Feb. 2/1 He..was court-martialled, and came near being shot. But..[he] had early become a past master of chess..The staff were unable to face a sudden curtailment of their only recreation, and the insubordinate was spared.
Derivatives
insuˈbordinately adv. in an insubordinate, unsubmissive, or refractory manner.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > lack of subjection > [adverb] > insubordinately
insubordinately18..
18.. in Jas. Grant Hist. India (1876) I. xli. 209/1 The king's troops..loudly and insubordinately uttered the old complaint of want of beef.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1900; most recently modified version published online March 2018).
<
adj.n.18..