adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of flaccid
First recorded in 1620–30; from Latin flaccidus “flabby, drooping,” equivalent to flacc(ēre) “to grow weak, languish” + -idus -id 4
Explanation
If something is limp, loose, droopy, and wrinkly, you can call it flaccid, which rhymes with "acid." Think elephant skin, soggy asparagus, and the type of feeble handshakes frowned on in job interviews. We get the word flaccid from the Latin flaccus, which meant "flabby." The meaning is pretty much the same today, though it applies to more than physical flab. Flaccid pops up in conversation to describe lackluster leadership, dull conversation, and even feeble attempts at word definitions. If a politician's election campaign is flaccid, it will surprise no one that he only receives two votes — one from his grandmother and the other from someone who accidentally checked the wrong box on the ballot.
Vocabulary lists containing flaccid
A Thousand Splendid Suns
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Feeling Faint: Synonyms for "Weak"
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The Picture of Dorian Gray
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Flaccid posturing doesn't wear well on her, but without sparring partners to make her irresistibly despicable, squishiness is all she has.
From Salon • Oct. 27, 2023
Flaccid and spongy, they are of little use to people any more, but this annual surge of protein benefits more than just the fishermen.
From The Guardian • May 13, 2018
Flaccid, the ’hawk looked less punk-rock, more Flock-of-Seagulls.
From Salon • Dec. 7, 2013
Flaccid, branched, creeping; leaf-divisions straight, spreading, each composed of a single row of cells; perianth ovate-cylindric.
From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Gray, Asa
Flaccid as they were, they had been capable of resolute perseverance there.
From The Old Wives' Tale by Bennett, Arnold
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
