compliant
Americanadjective
-
complying; obeying, obliging, or yielding, especially in a submissive way.
a man with a compliant nature.
-
manufactured or produced in accordance with a specified body of rules (usually used in combination).
Energy Star-compliant computers.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of compliant
Explanation
If you are willing to submit to someone's request, then you are compliant. Parents like it when their teenagers are compliant and follow the rules. Teenagers, on the other hand, are probably not as compliant as parents would like to think! The adjective compliant can also describe something that conforms or is agreeable. "The lawyers made sure that the man's will was fully compliant with state law, so that his children could not contest his desire to leave his entire estate to his dog, Fluffy." If you buy computer software that is not compliant with your operating system, it won't work properly.
Vocabulary lists containing compliant
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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The Poet X
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The Sun Is Also a Star
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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.
If it were up to him, the 44-year-old mechanic would choose something better: a fully compliant workshop with modern facilities on which he would pay taxes and bid for contracts.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Tesla notified the agency that it had self-certified all the vehicles as compliant with federal safety standards and plans to gradually expand commercial deployment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
But a key question remains on whether parts compliant with the USMCA, the trilateral trade pact, would continue to be exempt from levies, Levy wrote in a note Monday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
If a panel meets these requirements, it will appear as compliant on the Energy Networks Association's public register, external, so it is definitely worth checking before buying.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
“I thought it might be good to get some signatures while people are in a compliant state.”
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
