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refractory - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'refractory' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Refractory [ a.]
- Obstinate in disobedience; contumacious; stubborn; unmanageable; as, a refractory child; a refractory beast.
- Resisting ordinary treatment; difficult of fusion, reduction, or the like; -- said especially of metals and the like, which do not readily yield to heat, or to the hammer; as, a refractory ore.
2 . Refractory [ n.]
- A refractory person.
- Refractoriness.
- OPottery) A piece of ware covered with a vaporable flux and placed in a kiln, to communicate a glaze to the other articles.

Meaning of 'refractory' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . refractory [ s]
Meaning (1):
- stubbornly resistant to authority or control
Example in sentence:
  • a fractious animal that would not submit to the harness;
  • a refractory child
Meaning (2):
- not responding to treatment
Example in sentence:
  • a refractory case of acne;
  • a stubborn infection;
  • stubborn rust stains
Meaning (3):
- temporarily unresponsive or not fully responsive to a process or stimulus
Example in sentence:
  • the refractory period of a muscle fiber

Nearby Words:

refaction refar refashion refashionment refasten refect refection refective refectories refectory

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