temperamental
7
6.3
- adjective
- /ˌtɛmpəˈrɛmənˌtəl/
:
temperamental
- Children differ, however, in the strengths of their temperamental tendencies and capabilities.
- temperamental individuality
- temperamental tendencies
- temperamental disposition
This this book, Raising Your Spirited Child by Mary Sheedy Karsinka is a really great place to start understanding your child's temperamental traits and also yours.
- This this book, Raising Your Spirited Child by Mary Sheedy Karsinka is a really great place to start understanding your child's temperamental traits and also yours.
Examples
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I think our differences are as much temperamental as they are doctrinal.
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I'm too temperamental, too nervous.
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- You've always been a temperamental kid, Jimmy.
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Well, he's still temperamental, but let's risk it.
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Resilient youth appear to possess temperamental characteristics that elicit positive responses from people around them.
Academic text (1996) -
Geldings can be nearly as temperamental as stallions; so can mares.
Fiction book (1998) -
Bert is a kind of temperamental adolescent, big and brooding, who enjoys the combat of the courtroom.
Fiction book (1994) -
Issues of voice change, self-esteem, and peer approval contribute to their anxiety, often evidenced in their temperamental dispositions.
Academic text (2014) -
Behaviors that express children's temperamental individuality evoke characteristic responses from others.
Academic text (1998) -
Having always been a temperamental person, Maria expressed her feelings passionately and sometimes unpredictably.
Synonyms
34
7.4
Having sudden unpredictable changes in feelings toward others
1
7.4
Showing a person's usual mood, character or way of behaving
Often changes mood or behavior quickly and without warning
Antonyms
Compounds
Surface Forms
Morphology
temperamental = temperament (transparent) = temper + ment + al
The adjective is a regular formation from 'temperament' with '-al', so the relation to the base meaning is clear.
Etymology
Temperamental comes from temperament, which traces back to Latin temperare meaning 'to mix' or 'to balance'. Think of a person's temperament as their natural 'mix' of feelings and behaviour, so temperamental relates to that inner disposition.