Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Flexibility |
FlexibilityNoun1. The property of being flexible. 2. The quality of being adaptable or variable; "he enjoyed the flexibility of his working arrangement". 3. The trait of being easily persuaded. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "flexibility" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1588. (references) |
Etymology: Flexibility \Flex`i*bil"i*ty\, noun. [Latin expression flexibilitas: compare to the French expression flexibilite.]. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Building & Civil Engineering | The ratio which the rate of discharge from the outlet(dq/q)bears to the rate of change of discharge dQ/Q in the supply or distributing channel. Source: European Union. (references) |
Business | The -- of consumer magazines has been. . . increased through regional editions which enable advertisers to place ads in copies circulated in particular market areas. Source: European Union. (references) |
Chemical Industry | Degree to which a coating after drying is able to conform to movement or deformation of its supporting substrate, without cracking or flaking. Source: European Union. (references) |
Computing | Facility for introducing ad hoc modifications for individual series of runs without changing the original version. Source: European Union. (references) |
| In computing, a characteristic of a hardware or software system which makes it possible to be changed and adapted without too much additional work. Source: European Union. (references) | |
| The aggregate of all processes and procedures established in an ADP system and designed to inhibit unauthorized access, contamination, or elimination of a file. Source: European Union. (references) | |
Physics | Ability of a material to undergo elastic bending without breaking. Source: European Union. (references) |
Sports & Leisure | A measure of a ski's stiffness. Flex pattern refers to the way ski's stiffness is distributed over the length of the ski, stiffer at the tail, more flexible in front. Source: European Union. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Synonyms: FlexibilitySynonyms: flexibleness (n), tractability (n), tractableness (n). (additional references) |
| Antonyms: inflexibility (n), intractability (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Elasticity | Flexibility, Young's modulus. |
Facility | Noun: facility, ease; easiness; Adjective: capability; feasibility; (practicability); flexibility, pliancy; smoothness. |
Softness | Noun: softness, pliableness. Adjective: flexibility; pliancy, pliability; sequacity, malleability; ductility, tractility; extendibility, extensibility; plasticity; inelasticity, flaccidity, laxity. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Do you just want to lose weight, or are you looking to increase strength and flexibility as well (American Beauty; writing credit: Alan Ball) You know what the average Common Market official is like ? They've got the flexibility of the Germans, the organising ability of the Italians and the modesty of the French (Yes, Minister; writing credit: Semyon Lungin) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Theater & Movies |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
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| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Underwater writing slates were used to record the different species adhering to the top, side and interior roof of pipes over time. Counting the interior surface of pipes took considerable flexibility on the part of the diver. Credit: The Coral Kingdom. |  | The NF-16D VISTA will give the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., flexibility by providing one aircraft that can play the role of several fighters. It also provides students an opportunity to learn how to test future integra. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Physical and occupational therapy may help maintain flexibility. (references) | |
Restrictive cardiomyopathy--Heart muscle disease in which the muscle walls become stiff and lose their flexibility. (references) | ||
In this disease, the walls of the ventricles stiffen and lose their flexibility due to infiltration by abnormal tissue. (references) | ||
Business | A certain degree of flexibility is considered normal in the establishment of terms and conditions. (references) | |
Foreign firms must also emphasize long-term relationships and flexibility when negotiating with local companies. (references) | ||
Hitachi and Kobe Steel are two Japanese firms appreciated for flexibility in fulfilling equipment specifications. (references) | ||
Civil Liberties | Korea | It also has shown flexibility toward persons whose applications were rejected in the government review process, but whom the UNHCR found met the definition of refugee. (references) |
Japan | In recent years, the Government has shown flexibility in dealing with visa extensions for Chinese student dissidents, although it continues to be reluctant to grant permanent asylum. (references) | |
Singapore | The fact that the Government gradually has raised the allowed weekly circulation of the publications corresponding more or less to actual demand allows the Government to maintain this aspect of control over the press while still maintaining the appearance of flexibility. (references) | |
Economic History | India | The Board has the flexibility to negotiate with investors. (references) |
Israel | Flexibility and adaptation to local consumer demand is important for success. (references) | |
Ireland | The Irish workforce is characterized by a high degree of flexibility and mobility. (references) | |
Human Rights | Hungary | The lack of a bail system gives a great deal of flexibility to judges. (references) |
Political Economy | Netherlands | Reforms are continuing with a stronger emphasis on market flexibility. (references) |
GREECE | This restricts the flexibility of firms and the mobility of Greek labor and contributes to unemployment. (references) | |
Trade | Philippines | The Philippines also requested flexibility on end dates. (references) |
China | The program has reduced some of the flexibility of local customs officials to "negotiate" duties. (references) | |
Spain | Because of the increased liberalization and greater flexibility of the Spanish financial system, the money market has become increasingly more important. (references) | |
Travel | Tanzania | Patience, specificity and flexibility are essential for success. (references) |
Italy | Italy recently enacted legislation providing flexibility in store operating hours when retail establishments can be open. (references) | |
Worker Rights | Seychelles | There was little flexibility in setting wages. (references) |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | LEXICOGRAPHER, n. A pestilent fellow who, under the pretense of recording some particular stage in the development of a language, does what he can to arrest its growth, stiffen its flexibility and mechanize its methods. For your lexicographer, having written his dictionary, comes to be considered "as one having authority," whereas his function is only to make a record, not to give a law. The natural servility of the human understanding having invested him with judicial power, surrenders its right of reason and submits itself to a chronicle as if it were a statue. Let the dictionary (for example) mark a good word as "obsolete" or "obsolescent" and few men thereafter venture to use it, whatever their need of it and however desirable its restoration to favor -- whereby the process of improverishment is accelerated and speech decays. On the contrary, recognizing the truth that language must grow by innovation if it grow at all, makes new words and uses the old in an unfamiliar sense, has no following and is tartly reminded that "it isn't in the dictionary" -- although down to the time of the first lexicographer (Heaven forgive him!) no author ever had used a word that was in the dictionary. In the golden prime and high noon of English speech; when from the lips of the great Elizabethans fell words that made their own meaning and carried it in their very sound; when a Shakespeare and a Bacon were possible, and the language now rapidly perishing at one end and slowly renewed at the other was in vigorous growth and hardy preservation -- sweeter than honey and stronger than a lion -- the lexicographer was a person unknown, the dictionary a creation which his Creator had not created him to create. God said: "Let Spirit perish into Form," And lexicographers arose, a swarm! Thought fled and left her clothing, which they took, And catalogued each garment in a book. Now, from her leafy covert when she cries: "Give me my clothes and I'll return," they rise And scan the list, and say without compassion: "Excuse us -- they are mostly out of fashion." Sigismund Smith |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
John Thune | Look, every president going back to Jimmy Carter and actually before that, back to the Kennedy administration, has had flexibility when it comes to the issue of national security. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
Harry S. Truman | 1945-1953 | Small business, because of its flexibility, assists in the rapid exploitation of scientific and technological discoveries. |
Gerald Ford | 1974-1977 | But in the final analysis, as the framers of our Constitution knew from hard experience, the foreign relations of the United States can be conducted effectively only if there is strong central direction that allows flexibility of action. |
Jimmy Carter | 1977-1981 | As the Shuttle development phases down, however, there will be added flexibility to consider new space applications, space science and new space exploration activities. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | Let us give the states even more flexibility and encourage more reforms. |
George Bush | 1989-1993 | My plan will give parents more choice, give teachers more flexibility and help communities create new American schools. |
Bill Clinton | 1993-2001 | We are moving from an Industrial Age built on gears and sweat to an Information Age, demanding skills and learning and flexibility. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Flexibility" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 99.84% of the time. "Flexibility" is used about 1,905 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 99.84% | 1,902 | 4,498 |
| Noun (common) | 0.16% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 1,905 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Hypenated Usage | |
Ending with "flexibility": non-flexibility, ultra-flexibility. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "flexibility"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | përkulshmëri (give, pliability, pliancy, springiness, suppleness), lakueshmëri. (various references) | |
Arabic | مرونة (elasticity, limberness, lissom, lissome, litheness, lithesome, pliability, pliancy, resilience, springiness), ليونة (ductility, elasticity, plasticity, pliability, pliancy, suppleness), لدانة (plasticity, softness, suppleness), تمايل (bob, lopsided, lurch, nod, reel, roll, stagger, sway, swing, teeter, titubation, waver, weave, wobble), المرونة (resilience), الانثنائية. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | съобразителност (acumen, acuteness, gumption, policy, resourcefulness), сговорчивост (accommodation, tractability), гъвкавост (elasticity, facility, give, plasticity, pliability, pliancy, resilience, resiliency, suppleness, versatility), приспособимост (adaptability, pliability), подвижност (agility, mobility, removability, resilience, resiliency, versatility), податливост (accessibility, amenability, ductility, facility, malleability, manageability, pliability, pliancy, squeezability, susceptibility). (various references) | |
Chinese | 靈活性 , 灵活性, 機動性 , 伸縮性 . (various references) | |
Czech | flexibilita, pružnost (bounce, elasticity, give, resilience, springiness, stretch), ohebnost (limpness, malleability, pliability). (various references) | |
Danish | fleksibilitet, fjederkarakteristik (spring camber, spring rate), smidighed, elasticitet (compliance, elasticity), boejelighed (pliability), bøjelighed (pliability). (various references) | |
Dutch | flexibiliteit, veerdoorbuiging (spring camber, spring rate), buigzaamheid (pliability), buigbaarheid (ductility, pliability), Biegefaehigkeit. (various references) | |
Finnish | taipuisuus (pliability), joustavuus (elasticity). (various references) | |
French | souplesse (flimsiness), flexibilité. (various references) | |
German | flexibilität (pliability, versatility), anpassungsfähigkeit (adaptability, action flexibility, adaptiveness), geschmeidigkeit (malleability, lissomeness, litheness, malleableness, pliability, pliableness, suppleness), biegsamkeit (pliability, pliancy, limberness). (various references) | |
Greek | ευκαμψία (pliability), ευλυγισία (lissomeness, suppleness). (various references) | |
Hebrew | כפיפות (malleability, pliability, subordination), גמישות (ductility, elasticity, malleability, plasticity, pliability, pliancy, spring, stretch), גמש (elasticity, pliability). (various references) | |
Hungarian | hajlíthatóság (ductility, malleability), hajlékonyság (pliancy, suppleness, pliableness, tractableness). (various references) | |
Indonesian | fleksibilitas, kelenturan (malleability). (various references) | |
Italian | flessibilità (softness, suppleness, yieldingness). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 弾力 (elasticity), 伸縮 (elasticity). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | フレキシビリティー , なんせい (elasticity, softness, southwest), しんしゅく (elasticity, expansion and contraction, strict enforcement), のびちぢみ (elasticity, expansion and contraction), ゆうずうむげ (adaptability, versatility), だんりょくせい (adaptability, elasticity, resilience), だんりょく (elasticity). (various references) | |
Korean | 융통성. (various references) | |
Manx | so-vioraght, so-lhoobaght (adaptability, buoyancy, elasticity, facility, malleability, plasticity, pliability). (various references) | |
Norwegian | fleksibilitet, bøyelighet. (various references) | |
Pig Latin | exibilityflay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | flexibilidade (pliability). (various references) | |
Romanian | flexibilitate (ductility, elasticity, litheness, manageability, pliability, pliancy, spring, suppleness), supleţe (litheness, suppleness). (various references) | |
Russian | гибкость (pliability, pliancy, suppleness). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | savitljivost (malleability, pliability, pliancy, suppleness), elastičnost (elasticity, resilience, resiliency, springiness). (various references) | |
Spanish | flexibilidad (pliability). (various references) | |
Swedish | flexibilitet (give). (various references) | |
Turkish | uysallık (acquiescence, clemency, compliance, docility, ductility, give, mansuetude, meekness, milkiness, pliability, pliancy, softness, submissiveness, suppleness, tameness), esneklik (elasticity, free play, give, litheness, plasticity, pliability, pliancy, resilience, spring, springiness, stretch, suppleness, swing), elastikiyet (elasticity, resilience), bükülebilirlik (pliability, pliancy). (various references) | |
Turkmen | maяyзgaklyk, зeяelik. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | гнучкість (ductility, elasticity, plasticity, pliability, pliancy, suppleness), еластичність (ductility, elasticity, give, resilience, resiliency, springiness, stretch). (various references) | |
Vietnamese | tính linh hoạt (flexility, spiritedness), tính dễ uốn nắn tính linh động (flexility), tính dễ uốn tính dễ sai khiến (flexility), tính chất mền dẻo (flexility), tính chất dẻo (flexility), tính đễ thuyết phục (flexility). (various references) | |
Welsh | ystwythder (pliancy), hyblygrwydd (pliancy). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words ending with "flexibility": inflexibility. (additional references) | |
| |
"Flexibility" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: flexability, flexbility, flexibilty, flexilbility. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "flexibility" (pronounced fle'ksubi"lutē) |
| 12 | f l e' k s u b i" l u t ē | inflexibility. |
| 8 | -s u b i" l u t ē | accessibility, admissibility, comprehensibility, disability, irresponsibility, enforceability, impossibility, inaccessibility, invincibility, miscibility, possibility, responsibility, sensibility. |
| 7 | -u b i" l u t ē | acceptability, ability, adaptability, advisability, affordability, amiability, applicability, availability, believability, capability, comparability, compatibility, convertibility, credibility, culpability, debility, deductibility, deniability, dependability, desirability, irritability, durability, electability, eligibility, fallibility, feasibility, flammability, gullibility, inability, incompatibility, indestructibility, inevitability, infallibility, instability, invisibility, invulnerability, legibility, liability, malleability, maneuverability, marketability, palatability, permeability, plausibility, portability, predictability, probability, profitability, readability, reliability, respectability, stability, suitability, survivability, susceptibility, sustainability, transferability, unavailability, unpredictability, unreliability, variability, viability, visibility, vulnerability. |
| 6 | -b i" l u t ē | immobility, mobility, nobility. |
| 5 | -i" l u t ē | agility, civility, docility, ductility, facility, fertility, fragility, futility, gentility, hostility, humility, incivility, infertility, motility, nonutility, senility, sterility, tranquility, utility, versatility, virility, volatility. |
| 4 | -l u t ē | abnormality, accountability, actuality, banality, bestiality, bisexuality, brutality, causality, centrality, collegiality, commonality, conditionality, confidentiality, congeniality, constitutionality, credulity, criminality, criticality, cyclicality, dimensionality, legality, duality, equality, eventuality, extraterritoriality, fatality, fidelity, finality, formality, frivolity, frugality, functionality, generality, geniality, heterosexuality, homosexuality, hospitality, illegality, immorality, immortality, impartiality, impersonality, incredulity, individuality, inequality, infidelity, informality, instrumentality, irrationality, lethality, liberality, locality, materiality, mentality, modality, morality, mortality, municipality, musicality, mutuality, nationality, neutrality, normality, originality, partiality, personality, plurality, polity, practicality, principality, proportionality, punctuality, quality, rationality, reality, seasonality, sensuality, sentimentality, sexuality, speciality, spirituality, technicality, theatricality, tonality, totality, triviality, universality, unreality, venality, vitality. |
| 3 | -u t ē | absurdity, acidity, activity, acuity, adversity, affinity, aggressivity, alacrity, alkalinity, ambiguity, amenity, amity, analyticity, animosity, annuity, anonymity, antiquity, anxiety, atrocity, audacity, austerity, authenticity, authority, barbarity, biodiversity, brevity, calamity, capacity, captivity, cavity, celebrity, charity, chastity, clarity, commodity, community, complexity, complicity, conductivity, conformity, congruity, connectivity, continuity, creativity, crotchety, curiosity, deformity, deity, density, depravity, deputy, dexterity, dignity, discontinuity, laity, laxity, disparity, dissimilarity, disunity, diversity, divinity, domesticity, duplicity, eccentricity, elasticity, electricity, enmity, enormity, entity, equanimity, equity, eternity, ethnicity, exclusivity, expressivity, extremity, falsity, familiarity, Felicity, femininity, ferocity, festivity, fluidity, fraternity, generosity, gratuity, gravity, heredity, heterogeneity, hilarity, homogeneity, humanity, humidity, hyperactivity, hypersensitivity, identity, illiquidity, immaturity, immunity, impropriety, impunity, impurity, inactivity, incapacity, incongruity, indemnity, indignity, inequity, inferiority, infinity, infirmity, ingenuity, inhumanity, insanity, insecurity, insensitivity, insularity, integrity, intensity, irregularity, levity, liquidity, lividity, longevity, majority, masculinity, maternity, maturity, mediocrity, mendacity, minority, modernity, monstrosity, morbidity, multiplicity, nativity, necessity, negativity, Nonconformity, nonentity, notoriety, nudity, obesity, objectivity, obscenity, obscurity, oddity, opacity, opportunity, overcapacity, oversensitivity, parity, particularity, passivity, paternity, paucity, peculiarity, perpetuity, perplexity, perversity, piety, polarity, pomposity, popularity, posterity, priority, probity, proclivity, productivity, profanity, progressivity, promiscuity, propensity, propriety, prosperity, proximity, publicity, purity, quantity, radioactivity, rapidity, rarity, reactivity, receptivity, reciprocity, reflexivity, regularity, relativity, religiosity, retroactivity, rickety, rigidity, salinity, sanctity, sanity, scarcity, security, selectivity, seniority, sensitivity, serendipity, serenity, severity, similarity, simplicity, sincerity, sobriety, society, solemnity, solidarity, solidity, sorority, specificity, spontaneity, stupidity, subjectivity, superconductivity, superfluidity, superiority, supermajority, surety, temerity, tenacity, timidity, toxicity, Trinity, turbidity, ubiquity, unanimity, unfamiliarity, uniformity, unity, university, unpopularity, uppity, validity, vanity, variety, varsity, velocity, velvety, veracity, Verity, vicinity, virginity, virtuosity, viscosity, voracity, vulgarity. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "b-e-f-i-i-i-l-l-t-x-y" | |
-3 letters: flexibly. | |
-4 letters: flybelt. | |
-5 letters: biflex, billet, billie, fillet, fixity, illite, liefly. | |
| Words containing the letters "b-e-f-i-i-i-l-l-t-x-y" | |
+2 letters: inflexibility. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
