flexible

Everyday

1. Something flexible can bend easily without breaking, like rubber or a plastic ruler. tree →
2. A flexible person can bend and stretch their body easily. tree →
3. A flexible plan, time or rule can change to suit new situations. tree →
4. A flexible person is willing to change their plans or ideas. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons on materials, flexible is compared with rigid or stiff (rubber versus glass). In PE, stretching makes you more flexible. In everyday life, flexible hours and plans can be changed. Phrases: flexible material, flexible hours, flexible thinking.

Examples

• Rubber is a flexible material. tree →
• Gymnasts are very flexible and can do the splits. tree →
• The plastic ruler is flexible, but the wooden one is not. tree →
• Mum has flexible hours, so she can pick us up. tree →
• Our plans are flexible — we can go tomorrow if it rains. tree →
• Be flexible and try another way to solve the problem. tree →
• Copper wire is flexible enough to bend into shapes. tree →
• The branches were long slimy arms, with fingers like flexible worms, moving limb after limb from the root to the top. tree →

Note

Ends in «-ible», not «-able». Noun: flexibility. Opposites: rigid, stiff, inflexible. In science, flexible does not mean stretchy: a flexible ruler bends, but elastic stretches.