im-PECH-oo-uhs
His impetuous decision to quit his job left him scrambling for options.
Fun Fact
“Impetuous” comes from Latin impetere, meaning “to attack.” It describes decisions made in the heat of the moment—often dramatic, sometimes disastrous. Romeo and Juliet? Totally impetuous. But so are startup founders, comedians, and adventurers—when it works, it’s brilliant.
OB-dur-it
(adjective) Stubbornly refusing to change one’s opinion or course of action; hardened against moral influence.
Despite overwhelming evidence, he remained obdurate in his denial of wrongdoing.
Late Middle English: from Latin “obduratus,” past participle of “obdurare,” from “ob-” (in opposition) + “durare” meaning “to harden,” from “durus” meaning “hard.”
Fun Fact
Obdurate literally means “hardened against,” suggesting someone who has deliberately calcified their position beyond mere stubbornness. The word appears frequently in religious contexts describing hearts hardened against grace or compassion—Pharaoh’s obdurate heart in biblical narratives exemplifies willful resistance to moral persuasion. Unlike simple stubbornness, obduracy implies active resistance rather than passive inflexibility. Legal scholars describe obdurate defendants who refuse plea deals despite overwhelming evidence. The word shares roots with “durable” and “endurance,” but where those suggest positive persistence, obduracy is persistence in wrongness. Charles Dickens loved “obdurate” for describing misers and villains immune to sympathy. Modern psychology might diagnose severe obduracy as pathological rigidity, though sometimes standing obdurate against popular opinion requires courage rather than indicating vice.
Today's Word Tangential tan-JEN-shul Definition (adjective) Only slightly connected or...
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