Insistence

How to spell insistence

10 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce insistence

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does insistence mean?

1. nounThe act of demanding something firmly and refusing to give way, or of repeatedly stressing a point.

Insistence in a sentence

• At her insistence, the contract was reviewed by a second lawyer before signing.

• His insistence on punctuality meant every meeting started exactly on time.

Where does insistence come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This noun traces back to the Latin verb insistere, which literally meant 'to stand on' or 'to set foot upon', formed from the prefix in- meaning 'on' or 'upon' and sistere meaning 'to stand' or 'to take a stand'. From the bodily image of planting your feet firmly on something, the verb easily shifted to the figurative sense of holding your ground, pressing a point, or refusing to give way. English borrowed the related verb 'insist' in the sixteenth century, and the abstract noun 'insistence' followed, built with the Latin-derived suffix -ence that turns a quality or action into a thing. The same sistere root stands quietly inside a whole family of English words, including 'persist', 'resist', 'consist' and 'assist', all of which share that idea of standing. Remembering that hidden 'sist', the part that means 'stand', helps explain why the word is spelled with -sist- in the middle and ends in -ence rather than -ance.

How the word is built

• in- (on, upon)
• sist (from Latin sistere: to stand, to take a stand)
• -ence (noun-forming suffix)