restive vs restless
Definitions
adjective
- impatient especially under restriction or delay
- being in a tense state
Examples
I certainly don’t think that Iranian popular discontent should be disregarded, but we’ve been hearing these sorts of arguments about the restive Iranian population for years, and while I have no reason to believe that they aren’t true, Khamenei and his allies have consistently proven expert at deflecting calls for reform and preserving their regime, the main levers of which remain firmly in Khamenei’s hands.
He knew some members of the congregation, including the president, grew restive during his discourse, and would have preferred a more oratorical, hortative style, but he felt his type of sermon was more in keeping with his basic function of teacher, implicit in the word "rabbi.
Heavy shelling and bombardment rocked Somalias restive capital Mogadishu on Sunday, claiming the lives of at least 14 people Drag to Playlist
Definitions
adjective
- ceaselessly in motion
- lacking or not affording physical or mental rest
- worried and uneasy
Examples
Not so with this trivial, lawless country club set of the 1920's, drunk part of the time and reckless all of it, codeless, dutiless, restless.
The beast was as huge as an aurochs, its glossy midnight mane shining in the sunlight as it pawed the ground restlessly with one forehoof.
Restlessness is discontent - and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man - and I will show you a failure. Thomas A. Edison
