— rigidity, rigidness , n. — rigidly , adv.
/rij"id/ , adj.
1. stiff or unyielding; not pliant or flexible; hard: a rigid strip of metal.
2. firmly fixed or set.
3. inflexible, strict, or severe: a rigid disciplinarian; rigid rules of social behavior.
4. exacting; thorough; rigorous: a rigid examination.
5. so as to meet precise standards; stringent: lenses ground to rigid specifications.
6. Mech. of, pertaining to, or noting a body in which the distance between any pair of points remains fixed under all forces; having infinite values for its shear modulus, bulk modulus, and Young's modulus.
7. Aeron.
a. (of an airship or dirigible) having a form maintained by a stiff, unyielding structure contained within the envelope.
b. pertaining to a helicopter rotor that is held fixedly at its root.
[ 1530-40; rigidus, equiv. to rig ( ere ) to be stiff, stiffen + -idus -ID 4 ]
Syn. 1. unbending, firm, inflexible. 2. immovable, static. 3. austere, stern, unyielding. See strict. 4, 5. demanding.
Ant. 1. elastic. 3. lax.