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
- compliantly adverb
- compliantness noun
- overcompliant adjective
- precompliant adjective
- quasi-compliant adjective
- quasi-compliantly adverb
- uncompliant adjective
- uncompliantly adverb
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.
"With the UAE leaving, Opec loses about 15% of its capacity and one of its most compliant members."
From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026
There are about 900 VLCCs in the global fleet; 150 are sanctioned by the U.S. and aren’t compliant, so there is a true fleet of 750 compliant vessels.
From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026
Gilead’s future hangs on whether the Plums remain ignorant and compliant, as does the story of “The Testaments.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
By applying principles from larger-scale robotics such as rigid, compliant and origami robots, scientists are adapting familiar mechanical concepts to the nanoscale.
From Science Daily • Mar. 31, 2026
When war broke out, he was still docile and compliant.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
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.
