talks back
Gives lip back
To talk back is to respond rudely or defiantly to someone in authority—a child to a parent, a student to a teacher, an employee to a boss.
The phrase implies that the response itself is the offense, regardless of content: Don't talk back to me, young man.
Talking back suggests insubordination rather than legitimate disagreement.
Insolent verbal response
- sassImpertinent verbal attitude
- retortQuick, cutting reply
- comebackRecovery after decline
- lipMouth's outer edge
cheek · mouthiness · sarcasm · snark · wisecrack · quip · repartee · guff
Refusal to follow orders
- insubordinationDefying workplace authority
- defianceOpen resistance to authority
- noncomplianceFailure to follow requirements
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
recalcitrance · contrariness · mutiny · dissent · nonconformity · rebelliousness · unruliness · willfulness
Conveying one's inner world
- speaking upVoicing your thoughts
- confidenceSelf-assurance or trust
- boldnessFearless readiness to act
- directnessQuality of being straightforward
forthrightness · candor · conviction · empowerment · self-advocacy · outspokenness · frankness · voice
backtalk
Insolent verbal response
lip · cheek · mouthiness · sarcasm · snark · wisecrack · quip · repartee · guff · impudence
disobedience
Refusal to follow orders
- insubordinationDefying workplace authority
- defianceOpen resistance to authority
- noncomplianceFailure to follow requirements
resistance · recalcitrance · contrariness · mutiny · dissent · nonconformity · rebelliousness · unruliness · willfulness · obstinance
self-expression
Conveying one's inner world
- speaking upVoicing your thoughts
- confidenceSelf-assurance or trust
- boldnessFearless readiness to act
directness · forthrightness · candor · conviction · empowerment · self-advocacy · outspokenness · frankness · voice · agency
argument
Reasoned case or dispute
- disputeVerbal clash over differences
- challengeTest of ability
- rebuttalFormal response disputing claims
objection · disagreement · contradiction · clash · conflict · quarrel · squabble · bicker · spat · tiff