compliant
Americanadjective
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complying; obeying, obliging, or yielding, especially in a submissive way.
a man with a compliant nature.
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manufactured or produced in accordance with a specified body of rules (usually used in combination).
Energy Star-compliant computers.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of compliant
Explanation
If you are willing to submit to someone's request, then you are compliant. Parents like it when their teenagers are compliant and follow the rules. Teenagers, on the other hand, are probably not as compliant as parents would like to think! The adjective compliant can also describe something that conforms or is agreeable. "The lawyers made sure that the man's will was fully compliant with state law, so that his children could not contest his desire to leave his entire estate to his dog, Fluffy." If you buy computer software that is not compliant with your operating system, it won't work properly.
Vocabulary lists containing compliant
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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The Poet X
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The Sun Is Also a Star
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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.
“Customers are choosing SAP to enable accurate and compliant AI outcomes grounded in their most critical business processes and data,” CEO Christian Klein said in a statement.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
Mercedes welcomed the ruling but said it disagreed with the court judgement that one of its four sample vehicles was not compliant prior to the software update.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Dick Kay, Deloitte China's capital market services group leader, said that officials had cracked down on brokers to steer investors towards trading through compliant channels, which are more "manageable".
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
Polestar has said it anticipated cars in the U.S. would be compliant with the Commerce Department’s rule.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
When war broke out, he was still docile and compliant.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
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.
