resilience
Americannoun
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the power or ability of a material to return to its original form, position, etc., after being bent, compressed, or stretched; elasticity.
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the ability of a person to adjust to or recover readily from illness, adversity, major life changes, etc.; buoyancy.
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the ability of a system or organization to respond to or recover readily from a crisis, disruptive process, etc..
Cities can build resilience to climate change by investing in infrastructure.
noun
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Also: resiliency. the state or quality of being resilient
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ecology the ability of an ecosystem to return to its original state after being disturbed
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physics the amount of potential energy stored in an elastic material when deformed
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of resilience
First recorded in 1620–30; see resili(ent) + -ence
Explanation
Truly, your resilience, or ability to bounce back, is not just admirable, but foolhardy, some might say; who else could have survived an attack by a rabid toucan and then gone on to become a world-renowned bird breeder? The noun resilience stems from the Latin resiliens, “to rebound, recoil.” As a character trait, resilience is a person’s ability to recover quickly from unfortunate circumstances or illness. Runners who fall during a marathon only to pop back up and dash through the finish line show some serious resilience. Or Silly Putty that can stretch and stretch without breaking, and then come back to rest inside its egg-shaped carrying case — that’s resilience, or elasticity, for you.
Vocabulary lists containing resilience
List 3
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Hamilton
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Power Prefix: re-
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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.
Resilience has been impressive so far, but the very latest consumer confidence shows the impact of rising fuel and mortgage costs, which is likely to weigh on growth.
From BBC • May 14, 2026
This is where the proposed Defence, Security and Resilience Bank External link, or DSRB, could come in and cover ground the current mechanisms cannot.
From Barron's • Apr. 13, 2026
The Crisis Resilience Fund includes money specifically for those reliant on oil to heat their homes in Somerset.
From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026
Resilience is born of strong labor and capital markets, and building that strength requires better incentives to work and invest.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026
“Gruzunks! Trust? That is human nonsense. I am just asking Resilience to do his job.”
From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga
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.
