PLIABLE


Meaning of PLIABLE in English

pli ‧ a ‧ ble /ˈplaɪəb ə l/ BrE AmE adjective

[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: plier ; ⇨ ↑ pliers ]

1 . able to bend without breaking or cracking:

a shoe made of soft pliable leather

2 . easily influenced and controlled by other people:

Senior officials would have preferred a more pliable government.

—pliability /ˌplaɪəˈbɪləti, ˌplaɪəˈbɪlɪti/ noun [uncountable]

• • •

THESAURUS

▪ soft not hard, firm, or stiff, but easy to press:

a soft mattress

|

Her skin was lovely and soft.

|

soft ground

▪ tender used about meat or vegetables that are soft and easy to cut, especially because they have been well cooked:

The beef was very tender.

|

Cook the carrots until tender.

▪ soggy very wet and too soft, in a way that seems unpleasant – used about bread, vegetables, and the ground:

soggy cabbage

|

a piece of soggy bread

|

The ground was too soggy to walk on.

▪ squishy soft and easy to press – used especially about fruit that is too soft, and about soft wet ground which makes a noise when you walk on it:

squishy tomatoes

|

The leaves were squishy under our feet.

▪ squashy British English soft and easy to press – used especially about fruit that is too soft, and about chairs that are soft and comfortable:

The peaches have gone all squashy.

|

a big squashy sofa

▪ mushy used about fruit or vegetables that are very soft, wet, and unpleasant, because they are not fresh or have been cooked for too long:

mushy pieces of banana

|

a few mushy carrots

▪ spongy soft and full of holes that contain air or liquid like a sponge:

a spongy foam

|

a spongy loaf

|

His boots sank into the spongy soil.

▪ springy used about something that is soft and comes back to its normal shape after being pressed or walked on:

springy turf (=grass)

|

Her hair felt lovely and springy.

▪ pliable /ˈplaɪəb ə l/ used about a material or substance that can be bent or pressed without breaking or cracking:

The clay was still pliable and not too dry.

▪ yielding literary used about a surface which is soft and will bend when you press it:

yielding flesh

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.