Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Unwilling; disinclined: reluctant to help.
- adj. Exhibiting or marked by unwillingness: a reluctant smile.
- adj. Offering resistance; opposing.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Strivingagainst some opposing force; struggling or resisting.
- Struggling against some requirement, demand, or duty; unwilling; acting with repugnance; loath; as, he was very reluctant to go.
- Proceeding from an unwilling mind; granted with unwillingness: as, reluctant obedience.
- Not readily brought to any specified behavior or action.
- Synonyms Averse, Reluctant (see averse), disinclined, opposed, backward, slow.
Wiktionary
- adj. Opposing; offering resistance (to).
- adj. Not wanting to take some action; unwilling.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Striving against; opposed in desire; unwilling; disinclined; loth.
- adj. Proceeding from an unwilling mind; granted with reluctance.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. unwillingness to do something contrary to your custom
- adj. not eager
- adj. disinclined to become involved
Etymologies
- From Latin reluctans, present participle of reluctare, reluctari ("to struggle against, oppose, resist"), from re- ("back") + luctari ("to struggle"). (Wiktionary)
- Latin reluctāns, reluctant-, present participle of reluctārī, to reluct; see reluct. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“For those not in the business, the term "reluctant reader" tends to be a synonym for "boy.”
“Originally, I was what they called a reluctant spouse," she said.”
“Government data, industry surveys and interviews with employers big and small indicate that many businesses remain reluctant to hire full-time employees because health insurance, which now costs the nation's employers an average of about $3,000 a year for each worker, has become one of the fastest-growing costs for companies.”
Are Workers Getting Good Jobs?, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty
“Economists say the unemployment rate could climb as high as 10.5 percent next year because employers remain reluctant to hire.”
Department of Labor: unemployment rate 10.2%. - Moe_Lane’s blog - RedState
“Now, research has shown that comics are a great way to turbo-charge literacy in reluctant readers (especially in boys), and comics are suddenly being welcomed into classrooms all over the world.”
“I rise in reluctant opposition to H Res 560, which condemns the Iranian government for its recent actions during the unrest in that country.”
“Sarah George Palin reluctant leader who will return the power to the people.”
Think Progress » Palin says her favorite founding father is ‘all of them.’
“With demand shaky, companies remain reluctant to invest in plants, people or equipment.”
“Yet those incentives can be costly, and companies remain reluctant to spend money on inventory expansion or hiring.”
“According to the LA Times: “Latino voters, who have helped to propel California's leftward political swing over recent years, remain reluctant to embrace Republican candidates as the November general election nears.””
The Huffington Post: Frank Sharry: Immigration Insider: 5 Weeks to Election... CA, FL, and DREAM
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘reluctant’.
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important
shamanism, consol, sanguine, iffy, affinity, concatenation, honed, innumberable, aiden, inexorable, vet, suss and 176 more...
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EN - academic vocabulary
Use these and get promoted
abandon, abandonment, abnormally, abstract, abstraction, abstractly, abstracts, academia, academic, academically, academics, academies and 3119 more...
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Dominant/Submissive
abusive, adamant, autocratic, bossy, bullheaded, bumptious, certain, cock-a-hoop, cocksure, cocky, commanding, compelling and 189 more...
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Introverted
Quiet, shy, Introverted, reserved, isolated, mysterious
abashed, alienated, alone, anonymous, antisocial, ascetic, asocial, austere, autonomous, awkward, bashful, clannish and 91 more...
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GRE words Review
Review for GRE
Martinet, Polyglot, Hack, berate, hystrionics, shun, sullen, wanton, reluctant, miser, unseemly, perfunctory and 11 more...
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How SchizoTypical of You...
Ever think you were just like everyone else? Anything like anyone? Maybe even a little Average?
What if it Was just all in your head... . .
double~edged sWordsrationalization, moralality, motivated, reluctant, mature, unconditional love, prudent, unique, empowered, energetic, honest, working on myself and 14 more...
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lost in translation
As a native Spanish speaker, I always found it easy to find words that were missing in the English language that conveyed the precise meaning I cared for in Spanish. In undertaking a writing projec...
surreptitious, elusive, nondescript, demeanor, mannerisms, nonsensical, numb, obfuscate, pervaded, preemptive, stagnate, resilient and 5 more...
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Adjectives
IMPRESSIVE GROWTH..., outstanding growth, significant growth, ailing, humble, reluctant, pithy, crony, tertiary, transparent, significant
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big book gre
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 6689 more...
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Sonata Voacab
concealed, corridors, crumbling, director, doomed, employees, mocked, tragic, admirable, agitated, distinguished, intention and 4 more...
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aykut gre
mossy, intrusive, mettlesome, soliloquy, mocking, dissembler, prevarication, histrionics, aphorism, distinction, concise, pensive and 61 more...
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Neww
specious, disdainfully, vehemently, in lieu of, dismissive, perpetual, preposterous, impasse, fathom, conversely, repugnant, clogged and 142 more...
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Perfect Words
Words that perfectly suit the images to which they're bound.
soap, oil, crease, gibberish, scrawl, reluctant, crust, dazzling, dollop, poop
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fifi
verbs Adj Adv noun
indulge, convene, solve, dissolve, prospect, prospective, allege, resolve, accountable, administration, amid, agenda and 407 more...
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slumry's Words
cattywampus, ingratiate, lackadaisical, exactitude, exfoliate, fulminate, circumnavigation, circuitous, debride, sidle, sequester, chicory and 1002 more...
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GRE AWA
escalating, vehement, vehemence, hostility, paparazzi, regime, irrespective, scoop, exaggerated, overblown, unfetter, scrupulous and 272 more...
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