supple

[ suhp-uh l ]
/ ˈsʌp əl /

adjective, sup·pler, sup·plest.

bending readily without breaking or becoming deformed; pliant; flexible: a supple bough.
characterized by ease in bending; limber; lithe: supple movements.
characterized by ease, responsiveness, and adaptability in mental action.
compliant or yielding.
obsequious; servile.

verb (used with or without object), sup·pled, sup·pling.

to make or become supple.

Origin of supple

1250–1300; (adj.) Middle English souple flexible, compliant < Old French: soft, yielding, lithe < Latin supplic- (stem of supplex) submissive, suppliant, equivalent to sup- sup- + -plic-, variously explained as akin to plicāre to fold1, bend (thus meaning “bent over”; cf. complex), or to plācāre to placate1 (thus meaning “in the attitude of a suppliant”); (v.) Middle English supplen to soften, derivative of the noun (compare Old French asoplir)

OTHER WORDS FROM supple

sup·ple·ness, noun un·sup·ple, adjective un·sup·ple·ness, noun un·sup·p·ly, adverb

Example sentences from the Web for supple

British Dictionary definitions for supple

supple
/ (ˈsʌpəl) /

adjective

bending easily without damage
capable of or showing easy or graceful movement; lithe
mentally flexible; responding readily
disposed to agree, sometimes to the point of servility

verb

rare to make or become supple

Derived forms of supple

suppleness, noun

Word Origin for supple

C13: from Old French souple, from Latin supplex bowed