adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pliable
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from French, equivalent to pli(er) “to fold, bend” ( see ply 2) + -able -able
Explanation
Pliable means bendable but not breakable. Wax is pliable, good leather is pliable. If you describe a person as pliable, it usually means that he's easily influenced. When Madame barks "Plier!" (rhymes with "okay") in ballet class, all the students obediently bend their knees into a graceful semi-crouch. Plier is French for bend and it's the root of the word pliable. The word pliable itself is quite pliable, an apt description for everything from building materials to a person's character.
Vocabulary lists containing pliable
Power Suffix: -able
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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100 SAT words Beginning with "P"
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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.
“Water is soft but strong: There could be an intense hurricane or flood, but it’s also adaptable and pliable; it fills a space. Tai chi is water-like that way.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Thaw the pastry according to the package directions — ideally in the refrigerator, where it can become pliable without turning warm or sticky — and unfold it gently.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
That pliable framework creates uncertainty that chills classroom discourse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
This paradox raised a fundamental question: how can the planet's solid center appear firm yet strangely pliable?
From Science Daily ● Dec. 10, 2025
This one was too pliable and would not do, she realized, and dropped it on the ground.
From "Gathering Blue" by Lois Lowry
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.
