refractory Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun lining consisting of material with a high melting point; used to line the inside walls of a furnace
    furnace lining.
  2. adjective satellite not responding to treatment
    stubborn.
    • a stubborn infection
    • a refractory case of acne
    • stubborn rust stains
  3. adjective satellite temporarily unresponsive or not fully responsive to nervous or sexual stimuli
    • the refractory period of a muscle fiber
  4. adjective satellite stubbornly resistant to authority or control
    fractious; recalcitrant.
    • a fractious animal that would not submit to the harness
    • a refractory child

WordNet

Re*frac"to*ry adjective
Etymology
L. refractorius, fr. refringere: cf. F. refractaire. See Refract.
Definitions
  1. Obstinate in disobedience; contumacious; stubborn; unmanageable; as, a refractory child; a refractory beast.
    Raging appetites that are Most disobedient and refractory. Shak.
  2. Resisting ordinary treatment; difficult of fusion, reduction, or the like; -- said especially of metals and the like, which do not readily yield to heat, or to the hammer; as, a refractory ore. Syn. -- Perverse; contumacious; unruly; stubborn; obstinate; unyielding; ungovernable; unmanageable.
Re*frac"to*ry noun
Definitions
  1. A refractory person. Bp. Hall.
  2. Refractoriness. Obs. Jer. TAylor.
  3. OPottery) A piece of ware covered with a vaporable flux and placed in a kiln, to communicate a glaze to the other articles. Knight.

Webster 1913