Pliant

//ˈplaɪənt// adj

adj ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Capable of plying or bending; readily yielding to force or pressure without breaking.

    "a pliant thread"

  2. 2
    Easily influenced; tractable. figuratively

    "I muſt haue wanton Poets, pleaſant wits, Muſitians, that with touching of a ſtring May draw the pliant king which way I pleaſe: […]"

Adjective
  1. 1
    capable of being bent or flexed or twisted without breaking wordnet
  2. 2
    able to adjust readily to different conditions wordnet
  3. 3
    capable of being shaped or bent or drawn out wordnet
  4. 4
    capable of being influenced or formed wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
bendableimpressionablemalleablepliableaccessibleaccommodating

Example

More examples

"The fact that they're pliant does not mean they agree with you."

Etymology

From Middle English pliaunt, from Old French ploiant, present participle of ploiier (“to fold”).

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