rebellious spirit; defiant attitude
Describes a strong inner disposition to resist authority, convention, or control; often used positively for independent-minded people.
He is a young man full of rebellious spirit.
The writer's works show a defiant attitude.
Standard kanji form; the most common spelling for this word.
Rarely used kanji form; 反骨 is overwhelmingly preferred.
From Chinese 反骨, a supposedly rebellious bone or bone structure, familiar from an episode in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Japanese extended it to a defiant or independent spirit.