## Etymology
From supple (from Old French souple, from Latin supplex 'submissive, bending under', from sub- 'under' + plicare 'to bend, fold') plus the noun-forming suffix -ness.

## AI Etymology
Suppleness is from supple (from Old French souple, from Latin supplex 'submissive, bending under', from sub- 'under' + plicare 'to bend, fold') plus the noun-forming suffix -ness. Important recorded forms include supplex (Latin) and plicāre (Latin). Morphologically, the sub- element contributes the sense of under, below, secondary status, or movement from beneath, with the base naming the field of application. The modern sense is largely compositional, with the historical elements narrowing into a stable English lexical item. In current use it covers the quality of being flexible, pliant, or able to bend easily. The wider family includes related words such as supple and supply.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

markdown

suppleness

Meanings

Thesaurus

Etymology

Topics

External links

Keyboard Shortcuts

General

Send feedback