Adjacent Words

Contumacy definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CONTUMACY, n. [L.]
1. Stubbornness; unyielding obstinacy; inflexibility.
2. In law, a wilful contempt and disobedience to any lawful summons or order of court; a refusal to appear in court when legally summoned, or disobedience to its rules and orders.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: willful refusal to appear before a court or comply with a court order; can result in a finding of contempt of court
2: obstinate rebelliousness and insubordination; resistance to authority

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Middle English contumacie, from Anglo-French, from Latin contumacia, from contumac-, contumax rebellious Date: 13th century stubborn resistance to authority; specifically willful contempt of court

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. stubborn refusal to obey or comply. Etymology: L contumacia f. contumax: see CONTUMACIOUS

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Contumacy Con"tu*ma*cy, n.; pl. Contumacies. [L. contumacia, fr. contumax, -acis, insolent; prob. akin to contemnere to despise: cf. F. contumace. Cf. Contemn.] 1. Stubborn perverseness; pertinacious resistance to authority. The bishop commanded him . . . to be thrust into the stocks for his manifest and manifold contumacy. --Strype. 2. (Law) A willful contempt of, and disobedience to, any lawful summons, or to the rules and orders of court, as a refusal to appear in court when legally summoned. Syn: Stubbornness; perverseness; obstinacy.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Obstinacy, stubbornness, doggedness, perverseness, pertinacity, headiness, obduracy. 2. Disobedience, insubordination, insolence, disrespect.