resilience

Also re·sil·ien·cy

[ri-zil-yuhns, -zil-ee-uhns]

noun

1. the power or ability of a material to return to its original form, position, etc., after being bent, compressed, or stretched; elasticity.

2. the ability of a person to adjust to or recover readily from illness, adversity, major life changes, etc.; buoyancy.

3. the ability of a system or organization to respond to or recover readily from a crisis, disruptive process, etc..

   Cities can build resilience to climate change by investing in infrastructure.

Other Word Forms

• nonresilience noun
• nonresiliency noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of resilience¹

First recorded in 1620–30; resili(ent) + -ence

Example Sentences

The summit in Grantown, hosted by the Scottish government, will consider ways to improve resilience and prevent future outbreaks.

Read more on BBC

Firms are being urged to look beyond cyber-security controls toward a strategy known as "resilience engineering", which focuses on building systems that can anticipate, absorb, recover, and adapt, in the event of an attack.

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Dozens of U.S. cities and states — including Los Angeles, Seattle, and Philadelphia — now observe Indigenous Peoples’ Day to honor Native resilience and acknowledge the violence of colonization.

Read more on Salon

“I’m just honored to be a part of this legacy and to bring this message of resilience and survival of the human spirit to audiences.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

It consecrated a swathe of measures, including climate finance and resilience goals, to help those who are least responsible for warming but often hardest hit.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• flexibility