flexible

[ flek-suh-buhl ]
See synonyms for: flexibleflexibilityflexibleness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. capable of being bent, usually without breaking; easily bent: a flexible ruler.

  2. susceptible of modification or adaptation; adaptable: a flexible schedule.

  1. willing or disposed to yield; pliable: a flexible personality.

noun
  1. a flexible substance or material, as rubber or leather.

Origin of flexible

1
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin flexibilis “pliant, easily bent”; see flex1, -ible

synonym study For flexible

1. Flexible, limber, pliant refer to that which bends easily. Flexible refers to that which is capable of being bent and adds sometimes the idea of compressibility or expansibility: a flexible piece of rubber hose. Limber is especially applied to the body to refer to ease of movement; it resembles flexible except that there is an idea of even greater ease in bending: a limber dancer. Pliant stresses an inherent quality or tendency to bend that does not require force or pressure from the outside; it may mean merely adaptable or may have a derogatory sense: a pliant character.

Other words for flexible

Opposites for flexible

Other words from flexible

  • flex·i·bil·i·ty [flek-suh-bil-i-tee], /ˌflɛk səˈbɪl ɪ ti/, flex·i·ble·ness, noun
  • flex·i·bly, adverb
  • hy·per·flex·i·ble, adjective
  • hy·per·flex·i·ble·ness, noun
  • hy·per·flex·i·bly, adverb
  • non·flex·i·ble, adjective
  • non·flex·i·ble·ness, noun
  • non·flex·i·bly, adverb
  • un·flex·i·ble, adjective
  • un·flex·i·bly, adverb

Words Nearby flexible

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use flexible in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for flexible

flexible

/ (ˈflɛksɪbəl) /


adjective
  1. Also: flexile (ˈflɛksaɪl) able to be bent easily without breaking; pliable

  2. adaptable or variable: flexible working hours

  1. able to be persuaded easily; tractable

Derived forms of flexible

  • flexibility or flexibleness, noun
  • flexibly, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012