Translation guide
Describes something or someone that is easily bent, flexible, or adaptable. Can refer to physical materials, rules, or people who are easily influenced.
Describing materials or objects that can bend easily without breaking.
Describes something supple and gracefully flexible, like a willow branch or a dancer's body. Often has a positive connotation.
This leather is very pliant.
Literally 'soft and flexible'. Used for materials, but also metaphorically for attitudes or policies.
It's made of a pliant material.
A straightforward compound meaning 'easy to bend'. More literal and less elegant than しなやか.
This wire is pliant.
Describing a person who is easily persuaded, obedient, or yielding to others' will.
Means obedient, docile, or submissive. Often used for a person who follows orders without resistance.
He is pliant to his boss.
A noun meaning 'doing whatever someone says'. Often used in the phrase 言いなりになる (to be at someone's beck and call).
A natural phrase meaning 'listens well to what people say', implying a pliant nature.
Describing rules, plans, or mindsets that can be adjusted easily.
Direct translations like 曲げやすい人 (bendable person) sound unnatural. Use 従順 or 言いなり for a pliant person.
彼女は彼の言いなりだ。
She is pliant to his wishes.
That child is pliant to their parents.