empecinar

From em- +‎ pecina (“sludge”) +‎ -ar.

• IPA^(key): /empeθiˈnaɾ/ [ẽm.pe.θiˈnaɾ] (Spain, Equatorial Guinea)
• IPA^(key): /empesiˈnaɾ/ [ẽm.pe.siˈnaɾ] (Latin America, Philippines)
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: em‧pe‧ci‧nar

empecinar (first-person singular present empecino, first-person singular preterite empeciné, past participle empecinado)

1. (transitive) to smear with mud
2. (reflexive) to be stubborn, to insist
3. (reflexive) to get (something) into one's head

• “empecinar”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025