Insisters

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. Individuals who persistently demand or maintain a point of view or action ; persons who repeatedly urge or advocate a particular stance or behavior ; those who continue firmly and persistently in asserting or requesting something
2. People characterized by steadfast persistence in making requests or affirming opinions ; those who consistently push for a decision or adherence to a belief ; individuals showing resolute determination in their appeals or demands
3. Those who repeatedly press or insist on specific demands or ideas ; parties who strongly uphold and advocate certain positions or actions ; persons demonstrating continuous firmness in urging or requiring something

Etymology: "Insister" is a plain formation: the verb "insist" with the agent suffix "-er," meaning one who insists. "Insist" itself comes from Latin "insistere," literally "to stand upon" or "to press upon," built from "in-" (on, into) and "sistere" (to stand, to place). That physical sense of standing on something is the root of the modern idea of pressing a demand, since a person who plants their feet and will not move is the image behind "insist." The suffix has a longer lineage than the verb. It descends from Latin "-arius," which English received through Old French "-ier" and Middle English "-er," and it also arrived in Old English as "-ere," one of the endings that English kept from its own Germanic past. Words like "baker" and "writer" follow the same pattern, so "insister" belongs to a large English family of agent nouns. The plural "insisters" simply applies the regular -s ending to "insister," and it is most often used for people who press their demands on others.

Synonyms: advocates, persisters

Antonyms: opposers, resisters