flexible

English

A flexible tube

A flexible display

A flexible gymnast

Etymology

From Middle French flexible, from Latin flexibilis, from flectō (“I bend, curve”).

Morphologically flex +‎ -ible.

Pronunciation

(UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈflɛk.sɪ.bəl/, /ˈflɛk.sə.bəl/
Audio (US): (file)

Adjective

flexible (comparative more flexible, superlative most flexible)

Capable of being flexed or bent without breaking; able to be turned or twisted without breaking.
Synonym: pliable

Antonyms: stiff, brittle, inflexible, rigid
- c. 1602, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:
  When the splitting wind Makes flexible the knees of knotted oaks.
Willing or prone to give way to the influence of others; not invincibly rigid or obstinate.
Synonyms: tractable, manageable, ductile
- 1625, Francis [Bacon], “(please specify the chapter)”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC:
  Phocion the Athenian (a man of great severity, and no ways flexible to the will of the people […]
- c. 1591–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Third Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iv]:
  Women are soft, mild, pitiful, and flexible.
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.
Capable or being adapted or molded in some way.
Synonyms: plastic, malleable

a flexible language
- 1735, John Rogers, Nineteen Sermons on various occasions:
  This they foresaw was a Principle more flexible to their Purpose

Synonyms

The terms below need to be checked and allocated to the definitions (senses) of the headword above. Each term should appear in the sense for which it is appropriate. For synonyms and antonyms you may use the templates {{syn|en|...}} or {{ant|en|...}}.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

easily bent without breaking

Arabic: please add this translation if you can
Armenian: ճկուն (hy) (čkun)
Asturian: flexible (ast)
Azerbaijani: esnek
Belarusian: гі́бкі (híbki), гну́ткі (hnútki)
Bulgarian: гъвкав (bg) (gǎvkav)
Catalan: flexible (ca)
Cherokee: ᏩᏂᎨ (wanige)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 靈活／灵活 (zh) (línghuó)
Czech: ohebný (cs) m
Danish: fleksibel n, smidig
Dutch: buigzaam (nl)
Esperanto: fleksebla
Estonian: paindlik
Finnish: joustava (fi), notkea (fi), kimmoisa, taipuva (fi), taipuisa (fi)
French: flexible (fr)
Galician: flexible (gl), flexíbel (gl)
Georgian: მოქნილი (moknili), დრეკადი (dreḳadi)
German: biegsam (de), flexibel (de), elastisch (de), dehnbar (de)
Greek: εύκαμπτος (el) n (éfkamptos)
Ancient: εὐκαμπής (eukampḗs)
Hebrew: גמיש (he) m (gamísh)
Hindi: लचीला m (lacīlā)
Hungarian: hajlékony (hu)
Icelandic: sveigjanlegur (is)
Ingrian: notkia, nodra
Irish: aclaí, solúbtha
Italian: flessibile (it), pieghevole (it)
Japanese: 柔軟な (ja) (じゅうなんな, jūnan na)
Khmer: អាចបត់បែនបាន (aac bɑt baen baa nɔɔ)
Latin: flexilis, flexibilis
Manx: so-lhoobey
Maori: moruki (of a human body), pīngore
Norwegian: fleksibel
Occitan: flexible (oc)
Polish: elastyczny (pl), gibki (pl), rozciągliwy, giętki (pl)
Portuguese: flexível (pt)
Romanian: flexibil (ro)
Russian: ги́бкий (ru) (gíbkij)
Scottish Gaelic: lùbach
Spanish: flexible (es), doblegable
Swedish: flexibel (sv), böjlig (sv)
Tagalog: hutukin
Thai: ยืดหยุ่น (th) (yʉ̂ʉt-yùn)
Turkish: esneklik (tr)
Ukrainian: гнучки́й (hnučkýj), гну́чий (hnúčyj)
Volapük: please add this translation if you can

easy and compliant

Arabic: مَرِن (marin)
Armenian: զիջող (hy) (ziǰoġ)
Belarusian: рахма́ны (raxmány), пада́тлівы (padátlivy)
Bulgarian: податлив (bg) (podatliv)
Catalan: flexible (ca)
Danish: fleksibel, føjelig
Dutch: flexibel (nl)
Esperanto: fleksebla
Estonian: please add this translation if you can
Finnish: joustava (fi)
French: flexible (fr)
Galician: flexíbel (gl) m or f
Georgian: დამყოლი (damq̇oli)
German: fügsam (de), flexibel (de), elastisch (de), nachgiebig (de)
Greek: ευέλικτος (el) (evéliktos)
Hungarian: alkalmazkodó (hu)
Icelandic: sveigjanlegur (is)
Irish: aclaí, solúbtha
Italian: flessibile (it)
Khmer: អាចបត់បែនបាន (aac bɑt baen baa nɔɔ)
Latin: flexibilis
Manx: so-lhoobey
Maori: ngāwari
Odia: ନମନୀୟ (or) (namaniya)
Portuguese: flexível (pt)
Russian: покла́дистый (ru) (pokládistyj), пода́тливый (ru) (podátlivyj)
Spanish: flexible (es)
Turkish: elastik (tr)
Ukrainian: ла́гідний (láhidnyj), покла́дливий (pokládlyvyj), посту́пливий (postúplyvyj)

capable or being adapted or molded

Armenian: ճկուն (hy) (čkun)
Bulgarian: приспособяващ се (prisposobjavašt se)
Catalan: flexible (ca)
Dutch: flexibel (nl)
Finnish: joustava (fi)
French: flexible (fr), maléable
Galician: flexíbel (gl)
German: flexibel (de), dehnbar (de), weich (de)
Hungarian: rugalmas (hu)
Icelandic: sveigjanlegur (is)
Italian: flessibile (it)
Maori: kōngohe
Portuguese: flexível (pt)
Russian: ги́бкий (ru) (gíbkij)
Spanish: flexible (es)
Thai: ยืดหยุ่น (th) (yʉ̂ʉt-yùn)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

French: ^{(please verify)} souple (fr)
Swedish: ^{(please verify)} flexibel (sv)

Noun

flexible (plural flexibles)

(chiefly engineering and manufacturing) Something that is flexible.
- 2009 August 19, Terry McCrann, “Win-win deal for the times”, in Herald Sun‎^[1], archived from the original on 22 August 2009:
  Alcan is mostly flexibles -- and so it boosts Amcor's flexible packaging business to a globally significant $7 billion one.