intransigent

/ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt/

//ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"intransigent" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“intransigent” is uncommon English (frequency #67,536 among 2,140 “I” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#67,536
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Unwilling to compromise or moderate a position; unreasonable.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intransigent · intransigent · English

intransigent · rank #67,536 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #67,536
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH interoperable

Nearest frequency peer: interoperable (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “intransigent”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “intransigent” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for intransigent
PropertyValue
Headwordintransigent
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt/
Letters12
Frequency rank#67,536
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “intransigent” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).intransigentfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “interoperable” (#67,535), “internalization” (#67,534), “intelligibility” (#67,532). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intransigent” is #67,536. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

intransigent is uncommon English at frequency #67,536 among 2,140 “I” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Unwilling to compromise or moderate a position; unreasonable.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for intransigent, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French intransigeant, from Spanish intransigente, from Latin in- (“un-, not”) + trānsigēns, present participle of trānsigō (“to come to an understanding”), from trāns (“across”) + agō (“to do”). The correct English form is intransigent, spelled I-N-T-R-A-N-S-I-G-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Unwilling to compromise or moderate a position; unreasonable.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how intransigent appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Don't waste your time trying to change his mind: he's completely intransigent.
  2. Since I have been asked to do this in very brief compass, the harsh tone and terse style of my presentation will make my contentions appear more dogmatic and intransigent than I should wish them to be.

Etymology

Borrowed from French intransigeant, from Spanish intransigente, from Latin in- (“un-, not”) + trānsigēns, present participle of trānsigō (“to come to an understanding”), from trāns (“across”) + agō (“to do”).

This word in other languages

intransigente(Español)intransigeant(Français)kompromisslos(Deutsch)intransigente(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "intransigent"?
"intransigent" is spelled I-N-T-R-A-N-S-I-G-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt/.
What does "intransigent" mean?
As an adjective, "intransigent" means: Unwilling to compromise or moderate a position; unreasonable.
How do you pronounce "intransigent"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "intransigent" is /ɪnˈtɹæn.sə.d͡ʒənt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "intransigent"?
Borrowed from French intransigeant, from Spanish intransigente, from Latin in- (“un-, not”) + trānsigēns, present participle of trānsigō (“to come to an understanding”), from trāns (“across”) + agō (“to do”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "intransigent", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

lithographic#67,597magnetometer#67,614factionalism#67,431monumentally#67,658

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list