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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 8, 2010 is:
obstreperous \ub-STREP-uh-rus\ adjective
1 : marked by unruly or aggressive noisiness : clamorous
2 : stubbornly resistant to control : unruly
Examples:
On her first day of substitute teaching, Joanna expected to encounter a classroom of obstreperous teenagers, but the students were mostly well behaved.
Did you know?
The handy Latin prefix "ob-," meaning "in the way," "against," or "toward," occurs in many Latin and English words. "Obstreperous" comes from "ob-" plus "strepere," a verb meaning "to make a noise," so someone who is obstreperous is literally making noise to rebel against something, much like a protesting crowd or an unruly child. The word has been used in English since around the beginning of the 17th century. "Strepere" has not played a role in the formation of any other notable English words, but "ob-" words abound; these include "obese," "obnoxious," "occasion," "offend," "omit," "oppress," and "oust."
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