Standard Lemma guide

insolent

adj · noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK, US: /ˈɪn.sə.lənt/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: IH1 N S AH0 L AH0 N T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Insulting in manner or words, particularly in an arrogant or insubordinate manner.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Near-synonyms: arrogant, bold, cocky; see also Thesaurus:cheeky

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: impudent, arrogant, bold, cocky, audacious, get wise, bold-faced, bold as brass, brassy, brazen, brazen-faced, cheeky, chutzpadik, cocket, cute, dicacious, facey, familiar, flippant, flip, forward, fresh, impious, impertinent, insolent, irreverent, malapert, pert, petulant, sassy, saucy

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Rude.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Near-synonyms: insubordinate, offensive; see also Thesaurus:arrogant
  • insolent behaviour
  • insolent child
  • insolent remark

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: disrespectful, impertinent, smart, insubordinate, offensive, airy, arrogant, chesty, authoritarian, biggity, big-headed, blustery, boastful, lordly, bombastic, buggish, cocky, conceited, disdainful, domineering, egotistical, entitled, flatulent, flaunting, full of oneself, glorious, grandiose, hankty, haught, haughty, haut, high-handed, high-hat, high and mighty, highfalutin, hoity-toity, holier-than-thou, hubristic, hubristical, imperious, inflated, insolent, la-di-da, orgulous, ostentatious, overbearing, overweening, pompous, presumptuous, pretentious, priggish, puffed up, sanctimonious, self-important, snobbish, snooty, snotty, stout, stuck up, supercilious, thrasonic, thrasonical, toploftical, toplofty, tumid, turgid, uppish, uppity, uppy, upstage, vain

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A person who is insolent.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective satellite

Meaning 4

unrestrained by convention or propriety- Los Angeles Times- Bertrand Russell

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • an audacious trick to pull
  • a barefaced hypocrite
  • the most bodacious display of tourism this side of Anaheim
  • bald-faced lies
  • brazen arrogance
  • the modern world with its quick material successes and insolent belief in the boundless possibilities of progress

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: audacious, barefaced, bodacious, bald-faced, brassy, brazen, brazen-faced

Antonyms: none provided

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

marked by casual disrespect

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a flip answer to serious question
  • the student was kept in for impudent behavior

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: impudent, snotty-nosed, flip

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

PIE word *swé From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin īnsolēns (“unaccustomed, unwanted, unusual, immoderate, excessive, arrogant, insolent”), from in- (privative prefix) + solēns, present participle of solēre (“to be accustomed, to be wont”).

Across languages

Translations

126 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: onbeskof — insulting in manner or words
  • Afrikaans: onbeleefd — insulting in manner or words
  • Afrikaans: onbeskaamd — insulting in manner or words
  • Afrikaans: astrant — insulting in manner or words
  • Armenian: անպատկառ (anpatkaṙ) — insulting in manner or words
  • Armenian: հանդուգն (handugn) — insulting in manner or words
  • Belarusian: наха́бны (naxábny) — insulting in manner or words
  • Belarusian: зухва́льскі (zuxválʹski) — insulting in manner or words
  • Belarusian: дзёрзкі (dzjórzki) — insulting in manner or words
  • Bulgarian: наха́лен (nahálen) — insulting in manner or words
  • Bulgarian: арога́нтен (arogánten) — insulting in manner or words
  • Catalan: insolent — insulting in manner or words
  • Czech: drzý — insulting in manner or words
  • Czech: hrubý — insulting in manner or words
  • Czech: nestydatý — insulting in manner or words
  • Dutch: brutaal — insulting in manner or words
  • Finnish: loukkaava — insulting in manner or words
  • Finnish: röyhkeä — insulting in manner or words
  • French: insolent — insulting in manner or words
  • Galician: insolente — insulting in manner or words
  • German: beleidigend — insulting in manner or words
  • German: verletzend — insulting in manner or words
  • German: schamlos — insulting in manner or words
  • Greek: αυθάδης (afthádis) — insulting in manner or words
  • Ancient Greek: αὐθάδης (authádēs) — insulting in manner or words
  • Hungarian: szemtelen — insulting in manner or words
  • Hungarian: pökhendi — insulting in manner or words
  • Indonesian: kurang ajar — insulting in manner or words
  • Interlingua: insolente — insulting in manner or words
  • Irish: drochmhúinte — insulting in manner or words
  • Irish: soibealta — insulting in manner or words
  • Italian: insolente — insulting in manner or words
  • Kabuverdianu: atrividu — insulting in manner or words
  • Kabuverdianu: atrevide — insulting in manner or words
  • Latin: īnsolēns — insulting in manner or words
  • Latin: procāx — insulting in manner or words
  • Macedonian: наха́лен (nahálen) — insulting in manner or words
  • Macedonian: др́зок (dŕzok) — insulting in manner or words
  • Manx: neuyeeillagh — insulting in manner or words
  • Manx: mooaralagh — insulting in manner or words
  • Manx: daaney — insulting in manner or words
  • Māori: whakatīkai — insulting in manner or words
  • Māori: toroihi — insulting in manner or words
  • Occitan: insolent — insulting in manner or words
  • Plautdietsch: schwiendriest — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: bezczelny — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: arogancki — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: bezwstydny — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: hucpiarski — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: impertynencki — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: tupeciarski — insulting in manner or words
  • Polish: zuchwały — insulting in manner or words
  • Portuguese: insolente — insulting in manner or words
  • Russian: высокоме́рный (vysokomérnyj) — insulting in manner or words
  • Russian: наха́льный (naxálʹnyj) — insulting in manner or words
  • Russian: на́глый (náglyj) — insulting in manner or words
  • Russian: де́рзкий (dérzkij) — insulting in manner or words
  • Russian: вызыва́ющий (vyzyvájuščij) — insulting in manner or words
  • Slovak: bezočivý — insulting in manner or words
  • Slovak: hrubý — insulting in manner or words
  • Slovak: drzý — insulting in manner or words
  • Spanish: insolente — insulting in manner or words
  • Spanish: achorado — insulting in manner or words
  • Ukrainian: наха́бний (naxábnyj) — insulting in manner or words
  • Ukrainian: зухва́лий (zuxvályj) — insulting in manner or words
  • Ukrainian: зухва́льний (zuxválʹnyj) — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: hỗn láo — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: xấc láo — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: láo xược — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: xấc xược — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: láo — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: láo lếu — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: lếu láo — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: hỗn — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: hỗn hào — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: hỗn xược — insulting in manner or words
  • Vietnamese: lăng loàn — insulting in manner or words
  • Belarusian: наха́бны (naxábny) — rude
  • Belarusian: зухва́льскі (zuxválʹski) — rude
  • Belarusian: дзёрзкі (dzjórzki) — rude
  • Bulgarian: на́гъл (nágǎl) — rude
  • Bulgarian: дъ́рзък (dǎ́rzǎk) — rude
  • Bulgarian: наха́лен (nahálen) — rude
  • Catalan: insolent — rude
  • Czech: hrubý — rude
  • Dutch: brutaal — rude
  • Finnish: tyly — rude
  • Finnish: röyhkeä — rude
  • French: insolent — rude
  • German: anmaßend — rude
  • German: überheblich — rude
  • German: frech — rude
  • German: dreist — rude
  • German: ungebührlich — rude
  • German: unverschämt — rude
  • German: unverfroren — rude
  • German: kaltschnäuzig — rude
  • German: dummdreist — rude
  • German: dummfrech — rude
  • German: patzig — rude
  • German: vorlaut — rude
  • German: insolent — rude
  • Hungarian: arcátlan — rude
  • Hungarian: pimasz — rude
  • Indonesian: bajingan — rude
  • Interlingua: insolente — rude
  • Irish: soibealta — rude
  • Italian: insolente — rude
  • Kabuverdianu: atrividu — rude
  • Kabuverdianu: atrevide — rude
  • Polish: niegrzeczny — rude
  • Polish: chamski — rude
  • Polish: zuchwały — rude
  • Portuguese: insolente — rude
  • Russian: наха́льный (naxálʹnyj) — rude
  • Russian: на́глый (náglyj) — rude
  • Russian: де́рзкий (dérzkij) — rude
  • Russian: гру́бый (grúbyj) — rude
  • Slovak: hrubý — rude
  • Slovak: drzý — rude
  • Spanish: insolente — rude
  • Spanish: procaz — rude
  • Swedish: oförskämd — rude
  • Ukrainian: наха́бний (naxábnyj) — rude
  • Ukrainian: зухва́лий (zuxvályj) — rude
  • Ukrainian: зухва́льний (zuxválʹnyj) — rude