malleable

American  

[mal-ee-uh-buhl] / ˈmæl i ə bəl /

adjective

1. capable of being extended or shaped by hammering or by pressure from rollers.

2. adaptable or tractable.

   the malleable mind of a child.

   Synonyms:

   pliable, flexible, moldable, impressionable

   Antonyms:

   intractable, refractory

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malleable British  

/ ˈmælɪəbəl /

adjective

1. (esp of metal) able to be worked, hammered, or shaped under pressure or blows without breaking

2. able to be influenced; pliable or tractable

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malleable Scientific  

/ măl′ē-ə-bəl /

1. Capable of great deformation without breaking, when subject to compressive stress. Gold is the most malleable metal.

2. Compare ductile

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Other Word Forms

• malleability noun
• malleableness noun
• malleably adverb
• nonmalleable adjective
• unmalleable adjective

Etymology

Origin of malleable

1350–1400; Middle English malliable < Medieval Latin malleābilis, equivalent to malle ( āre ) to hammer (derivative of Latin malleus hammer) + -ābilis -able

Example Sentences

Rather than emphasizing unchangeable characteristics, he presented human beings as malleable over long stretches of time.

From The Wall Street Journal

What about the ecosystem or nervous system of Los Angeles is baiting jazz music out from its malleable shadow into a renewed prominence and even granting it rank in the clout economy?

From Los Angeles Times

This isn’t true — one can be wrong without lying, and memory is malleable.

From Los Angeles Times

Infant words whose meanings are still malleable pose little problem for the dictionary’s online database, since they can be updated whenever required.

From The Wall Street Journal

But they’re also malleable; there’s no telling what might affect them, or what a child might carry with them throughout their life.

From Salon

Related Words

• adaptable
• flexible
• supple
• workable