http://wordie.org/words/restive Comments for the word 'Restive' http://wordie.org http://wordie.org/words/restive#comments Though <a href="/words/restless">restless</a> and restive are close in meaning, I think. It's only that with "restive" there is the element of straining at the bit, trying to throw off control. In its origins, from the Latin restare, "to remain", it referred to a horse that refused to budge. That just stayed there, when you tried to make it move, and this led to the meaning "rebellious, disobedient, resisting control". Sat, 01 Dec 2007 15:57:55 +0000 http://wordie.org/words/restive#comments http://wordie.org/words/restive#comments Often used incorrectly to mean <i>restless</i>. Sat, 09 Dec 2006 06:41:13 +0000 http://wordie.org/words/restive#comments