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flaccid

[flak-sid, flas-id]
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adjective
  1. soft and limp; not firm; flabby: flaccid biceps.
  2. lacking force; weak: flaccid prose.
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Origin of flaccid

1610–20; < Latin flaccidus flabby, equivalent to flacc(ēre) to grow weak, languish + -idus -id4
Related formsflac·cid·i·ty, flac·cid·ness, nounflac·cid·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

resilienceelasticityresiliencypliabilityaffabilityplasticitygivespringpliancycomplaisancesupplenesstractabilityspringinesscomplianceductilitydocilityflacciditybouncemalleabilityadjustability

Examples from the Web for flaccidity

Historical Examples

  • It sank, excused for the flaccidity by Nataly's want of common adventurous daring.

    One of Our Conquerors, Complete

    George Meredith

  • His very malevolence proceeded from a flaccidity which meanly envied the activities and enthusiasms of other men.

  • Soon it would lose its paleness and flaccidity, become pink and slightly convex, pulsing with Rastignac's blood.

    Rastignac the Devil

    Philip Jos Farmer

  • Besides, inquiries concerning the health of cow-punchers were not only superfluous, but bordered on flaccidity.

  • Besides, inquiries concerning the health of cow- punchers were not only superfluous, but bordered on flaccidity.

British Dictionary definitions for flaccidity

flaccid

adjective
  1. lacking firmness; soft and limp; flabby
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Derived Formsflaccidity or flaccidness, nounflaccidly, adverb

Word Origin

C17: from Latin flaccidus, from flaccus
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 flaccidity

flaccid

adj.

1610s, from French flaccide or directly from Latin flaccidus "flabby," from flaccus "flabby, flap-eared," of uncertain origin (OED suggests it's imitative). Related: Flaccidly; flaccidity.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
flaccidity in Medicine

flaccid

(flăs′sĭd, flăk′ĭd)
adj.
  1. Lacking firmness, resilience, or muscle tone.
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Related formsflac•cid′i•ty (-sĭd′ĭ-tē) n.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.