ductile

[ duhk-tl, -til ]

/ ˈdʌk tl, -tɪl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ductile ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

capable of being hammered out thin, as certain metals; malleable.

capable of being drawn out into wire or threads, as gold.

able to undergo change of form without breaking.

capable of being molded or shaped; plastic.

Nearby words

Origin of ductile

1300–50; Middle English < Latin ductilis, equivalent to duct(us) (past participle of dūcere to draw along) + -ilis -ile

Related forms

duc·tile·ly, adverbduc·til·i·ty, duc·tile·ness, nounnon·duc·tile, adjectivenon·duc·til·i·ty, noun

sem·i·duc·tile, adjectiveun·duc·tile, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ductile

Well, I think that's better than to wash and iron it; but tell me how you'll have it done, and you shall find me ductile.
The Punster's Pocket-book|Charles Molloy Westmacott
The copper used was about an eighth of an inch thick, and the soft and ductile character showed that it was pure metal.
The Wonder Island Boys: Treasures of the Island|Roger Thompson Finlay
It is of a reddish colour, malleable, ductile, and tenacious.
The Silversmith's Handbook|George E. Gee
From morn to night he thumbed and pushed about the ductile clay.
A Fortnight of Folly|Maurice Thompson

Education takes possession of the ductile minds of the fair sex in their infancy.
A Treatise of Human Nature|David Hume

British Dictionary definitions for ductile

ductile

/ (ˈdʌktaɪl) /

adjective

(of a metal, such as gold or copper) able to be drawn out into wire

able to be moulded; pliant; plastic

easily led or influenced; tractable

Derived Formsductilely, adverbductility (dʌkˈtɪlɪtɪ) or ductileness, noun

Word Origin for ductile

C14: from Old French, from Latin ductilis, from dūcere to lead

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for ductile

ductile

adj.

mid-14c., from Old French ductile or directly from Latin ductilis "that may be led or drawn," from past participle of ducere "to lead" (see duke (n.)). Related: Ductility.

Medicine definitions for ductile

ductile

[ dŭk′təl, -tīl′ ]

adj.

Easily molded or shaped.

Science definitions for ductile

ductile

[ dŭk′təl ]

Easily stretched without breaking or lowering in material strength. Gold is relatively ductile at room temperature, and most metals become more ductile with increasing temperature. Compare brittle malleable.

Relating to rock or other materials that are capable of withstanding a certain amount of force by changing form before fracturing or breaking.