Flexible

//ˈflek.sɪ.bəl// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Something that is flexible.

    "Alcan is mostly flexibles -- and so it boosts Amcor's flexible packaging business to a globally significant $7 billion one."

Adjective
  1. 1
    Capable of being flexed or bent without breaking; able to be turned or twisted without breaking.

    "When the splitting wind Makes flexible the knees of knotted oaks."

  2. 2
    Willing or prone to give way to the influence of others; not invincibly rigid or obstinate.

    "Phocion the Athenian (a man of great severity, and no ways flexible to the will of the people[…]"

  3. 3
    Capable of adapting or changing to suit new or modified conditions or situations.

    "You can't always get what you want: you need to learn to be flexible."

  4. 4
    Capable or being adapted or molded in some way.

    "a flexible language"

Adjective
  1. 1
    bending and snapping back readily without breaking wordnet
  2. 2
    able to flex; able to bend easily wordnet
  3. 3
    capable of being changed wordnet
  4. 4
    making or willing to make concessions wordnet
  5. 5
    able to adjust readily to different conditions wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
pliablebendableductilelimbermanageablepliant

Example

More examples

"The education system needs to be more flexible."

Etymology

From Middle French flexible, from Latin flexibilis, from flectō (“I bend, curve”). Morphologically flex + -ible.

Related phrases

flexible sigmoidoscopyflexible timemake flexible

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.