Emily Dickinson Lexicon

FLEX'I-BLE, a. [L. flexibilis, from flecto, flexi, to bend, Fr. flechir, coinciding with G. flechten, to braid, D. vlegten. These words have the same elements as L. plico.]

1. That may be bent; capable of being turned or forced from a straight line or form without breaking; pliant; yielding to pressure; not stiff; as, a flexible rod; a flexible plant.
2. Capable of yielding to entreaties, arguments, or other moral force; that may be persuaded to compliance; not invincibly rigid or obstinate; not inexorable. Phocion was a man of great severity, and no ways flexible to the will of the people. Bacon. It often denotes, easy or too easy to yield or comply; wavering; inconstant; not firm.
3. Ductile; manageable; tractable; as, the tender and flexible minds of youth. Flexible years or time of life, the time when the mind is tractable.
4. That may be turned or accommodated. This was a principle more flexible to their purpose. Rogers.