ELASTIC


Meaning of ELASTIC in English

— elastically , adv.

/i las"tik/ , adj.

1. capable of returning to its original length, shape, etc., after being stretched, deformed, compressed, or expanded: an elastic waistband; elastic fiber.

2. spontaneously expansive, as gases.

3. flexible; accommodating; adaptable; tolerant: elastic rules and regulations.

4. springing back or rebounding; springy: He walks with an elastic step.

5. readily recovering from depression or exhaustion; buoyant: an elastic temperament.

6. Econ. relatively responsive to change, as to a proportionate increase in demand as the result of a decrease in price. Cf. inelastic (def. 2).

7. Physics. of, pertaining to, or noting a body having the property of elasticity.

n.

8. webbing, or material in the form of a band, made elastic, as with strips of rubber.

9. something made from this material, as a garter.

10. See rubber band .

[ 1645-55; elasticus expanding spontaneously, equiv. to Gk elast ( ós ) (late var. of elatós ductile, beaten (of metal), deriv. of elaúnein, elân beat out, forge) + -icus -IC ]

Syn. 3. resilient, pliant.

Ant. 3. rigid, inflexible, intolerant, unyielding.

Random House Webster's Unabridged English dictionary.      Полный английский словарь Вебстер - Random House .