English
refractory
Refractory comes from Latin refractārius ‘obstinate’, from refrāctus ‘broken up or open’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- ‘to break’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰreg-‘to break’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfrangō‘to break, shatter’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CErefringōas refringere, past participle‘to break up’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CErefrāctus‘broken up or open’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CErefractārius‘obstinate’
- Englishearliest quotation 1787refractory
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰreg-‘to break’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfrangō‘to break, shatter’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CErefringōas refringere, past participle‘to break up’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CErefrāctus‘broken up or open’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CErefractārius‘obstinate’
- Englishearliest quotation 1787refractory
Earliest quotation: 1787, Alexander Hamilton, No. 16: “[…] in most instances attempts to coerce the refractory…”
The story
Originally refractary, refractarie, but reanalysed after other adjectives in -ory.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- ‘to break’
break, broken, broke, brigade, brake, bracket, fraction, bray, suffrage, frail, breech, brogan, brogue, 37 more
through Latin frangō ‘to break, shatter’
fragile, fragment, fracture, fret, infringe, diffraction, infraction, fractal, 18 more
Today it means
adj Obstinate and unruly; strongly opposed to something.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- / refractory