inflexible adjective - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com

Definition of inflexible adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

inflexible

adjective
 
/ɪnˈfleksəbl/
 
/ɪnˈfleksəbl/
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  1. (disapproving) that cannot be changed or made more suitable for a particular situation synonym rigid
    • an inflexible attitude/routine/system
    • The rules are too inflexible to allow for human error.
    • an inflexible retirement age
    Extra Examples
    • The rules seemed arbitrary and inflexible.
    • The seven-year period is not totally inflexible.
    • The government has shown an increasingly inflexible attitude to dealing with the problem.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • seem
    • become
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  2. (disapproving) (of people or organizations) unwilling to change their opinions, decisions, etc., or the way they do things
    • He's completely inflexible on the subject.
    • She's a good teacher, but she can be rather inflexible.
    Topics Preferences and decisionsc1, Opinion and argumentc1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • seem
    • become
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  3. (of a material) difficult or impossible to bend synonym stiff opposite flexible
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • seem
    • become
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  4. Word Originlate Middle English: from Latin inflexibilis, from in- ‘not’ + flexibilis ‘flexible’.
See inflexible in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee inflexible in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
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