suppleness
/ˈsʌplnəs/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈsʌplnəs/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈsəpəlnə̇s How to pronounce suppleness (audio) ÷ˈsüp-/ (ame, mw)
suppleness — 名詞
1. the physical quality of a material or a part of the body that allows it to bend,
柔軟度；韌性
身體或物體易於彎曲的特性
the physical quality of a material or a part of the body that allows it to bend, stretch, or move into different shapes without breaking or causing pain
Heather does yoga every morning to maintain the suppleness of her spine and shoulders.
Heather 每天早上做瑜伽，以維持脊椎和肩膀的柔軟度。
collocation: maintain suppleness
The leather of Bao's old saddle lost its suppleness after years in the hot sun.
Bao 那副舊馬鞍的皮革在太陽下曬了多年後，失去了原有的柔韌性。
inanimate subject: lost its suppleness
Gita gently stretched her hamstrings to improve their suppleness before the race.
Gita 在比賽前輕輕伸展腿後肌，以改善它們的柔軟度。
Dancers need both suppleness and strength in their ankles to land jumps safely.
舞者的腳踝需要兼具柔軟度和力量，才能安全落地。
A good garden hose keeps its suppleness even in cold weather, so it coils easily.
一條優質的澆水軟管即使在寒冷天氣也能保持柔韌，方便盤繞。
- flexibility
more common in everyday speech; suppleness suggests a softer, more fluid quality
- elasticity
focuses on the ability to return to original shape after stretching, especially of materials
- pliability
suggests easy bending without cracking, used for leather, plant stems, or metal
用法筆記
Often describes skin, muscles, leather, rubber, or plant stems. Frequently paired with 'strength' in fitness and dance contexts.
常見錯誤
2. the quality of being able to adjust your ideas, methods, or plans quickly when c
靈活度；彈性
快速調整以因應變化的能力
the quality of being able to adjust your ideas, methods, or plans quickly when conditions change or new problems arise
Sade's mental suppleness helped her move from banking to teaching without difficulty.
Sade 的思維靈活性讓她從銀行業轉換到教職，過程中沒有遇到困難。
collocation: mental suppleness
A project leader needs intellectual suppleness to adapt the team's approach halfway through.
專案負責人需要有智慧上的靈活性，才能在執行中途調整團隊的方向。
The start-up's suppleness during the economic crisis kept it from going out of business.
這家新創公司在經濟危機期間展現的適應性，讓它免於倒閉。
Ziad showed remarkable suppleness by rewriting the entire proposal the night before the deadline.
Ziad 展現了驚人的應變能力，在截止日前一夜重寫了整份提案。
Eliska's suppleness helped her team launch the app despite losing two programmers mid-project.
儘管中途失去了兩名程式設計師，Eliska 的靈活性仍幫助團隊按時推出了應用程式。
- adaptability
more common in everyday use; suppleness suggests a smoother, more effortless kind of change
- versatility
focuses on the range of different skills or roles, not on the speed of change
- flexibility
the most common synonym; suppleness adds a nuance of fluidity and grace
- rigidity
unwillingness or inability to change methods or opinions
- inflexibility
more informal than rigidity; a refusal to adapt to new circumstances
用法筆記
Used in formal or professional contexts (business, leadership, education). Unlike sense 1, this sense describes mental or organisational qualities, never physical objects.