- hard or impossible to manage; stubbornly disobedient: a refractory child.
- resisting ordinary methods of treatment.
- difficult to fuse, reduce, or work, as an ore or metal.
- a material having the ability to retain its physical shape and chemical identity when subjected to high temperatures.
- bricks of various shapes used in lining furnaces.
- unmanageable or obstinate
- not responding to treatment
- (of a material) able to withstand high temperatures without fusion or decomposition
- a material, such as fireclay or alumina, that is able to withstand high temperatures: used to line furnaces, kilns, etc
