pliable

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

adj. plastic, ductile, malleable; flexible, supple, limber, yielding; docile, tractable, obedient, compliant. See softness, obedience.

II

(Roget's IV) modif.

1. [Flexible]

Syn. flexible, pliant, plastic, ductile, malleable, limber, supple, elastic, bending, bendable, workable; see also flexible 1 .

2. [Tractable]

Syn. tractable, pliant, docile, compliant, persuadable, persuasible, receptive, manipulable, adaptable, flexible, malleable, yielding, acquiescent, manageable, impressionable, irresolute, like putty*; see also docile , obedient 1 .

Syn.- pliable and pliant both imply a capability of being easily bent, suggesting the suppleness of a wooden switch and, figuratively, a yielding nature or adaptability; plastic is used of substances, such as plaster or clay, that can be molded into various forms which are retained upon hardening, and figuratively suggests an impressionable quality; ductile applies to that which can be finely drawn or stretched out, as copper, and figuratively suggests being easily led; malleable is used of that which can be hammered, beaten, or pressed into various forms and figuratively suggests a readiness to be trained, changed, molded, etc. [ copper is malleable as well as ductile; at a malleable age ]

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) a.

pliant, flexible, bendable, malleable, supple, yielding, plastic, elastic, moldable, impressionable.

ANT.: rigid, unyielding, hard

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) adjective 1. Capable of being shaped, bent, or drawn out, as by hammering or pressure: ductile, flexible, flexile, flexuous, malleable, moldable, plastic, pliant, supple, workable. See FLEXIBLE. 2. Capable of adapting or being adapted: adaptable, adaptive, adjustable, elastic, flexible, malleable, pliant, supple. See CHANGE. 3. Easily altered or influenced: ductile, elastic, flexible, flexile, impressionable, malleable, plastic, pliant, suggestible, supple. See FLEXIBLE.