Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Readily bent, folded, or manipulated; pliant: synonym: flexible.
  • adjective Moving and bending with agility; limber.
  • adjective Adaptable to changing circumstances.
  • transitive & intransitive verb To make or become supple.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To make supple; make pliant; render flexible: as, to supple leather.
  • To make compliant, submissive, humble, or yielding.
  • Specifically, to train (a saddle-horse) by making him yield with docility to the rein, bending his neck to left or right at the slightest pressure.
  • To soothe.
  • To become soft and pliant.
  • Pliant; flexible; easily bent: as, supple joints; supple fingers.
  • Yielding; compliant; not obstinate.
  • Capable of adapting one's self to the wishes and opinions of others; bending to the humor of others; obsequious; fawning; also, characterized by such obsequiousness, as words and acts.
  • Tending to make pliant or pliable; soothing.
  • Synonyms Lithe, limber, lissome.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Pliant; flexible; easily bent.
  • adjective Yielding compliant; not obstinate; submissive to guidance.
  • adjective Bending to the humor of others; flattering; fawning; obsequious.
  • intransitive verb To become soft and pliant.
  • transitive verb To make soft and pliant; to render flexible.
  • transitive verb To make compliant, submissive, or obedient.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective pliant, easy to bend
  • adjective lithe and agile when moving and bending
  • adjective flexible and compliant
  • verb To make or become supple.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective (used of e.g. personality traits) readily adaptable
  • adjective (used of persons' bodies) capable of moving or bending freely
  • verb make pliant and flexible
  • adjective moving and bending with ease

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English souple, from Old French, from Latin supplex, suppliant; see plāk- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English souple, from Old French souple, soupple ("soft, lithe, yielding"), from Latin supplic-, supplex ("suppliant, submissive, kneeling"), of uncertain formation. Either from sub + plicō ("bend") (compare complex), or from sub + plācō ("placate"). More at sub-, placate.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word supple.

Examples

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • jello: firm yet supple

    August 29, 2008