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Yielding

adj. kind, calm warm

What it means

Meaning 1

Willing to accommodate another person rather than insist on one's own preference.

Reach for it when describing flexibility when the compromise is freely chosen and fair

A yielding approach helped the neighbors agree on the shared boundary.

Meaning 2

Soft or flexible enough to give under pressure.

Reach for it when describing material that bends or compresses rather than resisting rigidly

The yielding surface reduced pressure beneath the injured heel.

Words to choose between 8

By register, from playful at the top to literary at the bottom, and by meaning across. Tap a word to see when it fits.
Meaning 1Meaning 2
everyday
warm
professional
formal

Meaning 1: Willing to accommodate another person rather than insist on one's own preference.

  • warm

    accommodating

    Fits when adjusting arrangements helps another person's needs

    Careful Accommodating can become one-sided and does not guarantee free choice.

  • professional

    compliant

    Fits when adherence to a request or rule is the literal fact

    Careful Compliant can imply power imbalance and is rarely warm praise for a person.

  • professional

    flexible

    Fits when willingness to change plans is the strength

    Careful Flexibility can be strategic and does not imply yielding a preference.

  • formal

    amenable

    Fits when openness to suggestion or influence is central

    Careful Amenable can frame someone as easy to manage rather than respectfully flexible.

Meaning 2: Soft or flexible enough to give under pressure.

  • everyday

    soft

    Fits when low resistance or cushioning is the simple property

    Careful Soft material may deform permanently rather than yield safely.

  • warm

    supple

    Fits when material bends smoothly without damage

    Careful Supple is tactile and positive but does not apply to every compressible surface.

  • professional

    elastic

    Fits when material returns toward its original shape

    Careful Elasticity requires recovery after pressure, which yielding alone does not.

  • professional

    pliable

    Fits when material can be bent or shaped

    Careful Pliable portrays someone as easily manipulated rather than appropriately yielding.

Opposites 4

  • unyielding
  • stubborn
  • rigid
  • hard

Common phrases 3

  • yielding nature

    His yielding nature helped only when others also compromised.

  • yielding approach

    A yielding approach made room for the late evidence.

  • yielding surface

    The yielding surface supported the seedlings without compacting the soil.

Word family 1

Usage notes

Keep in mind

Yielding can praise flexibility or criticize weak boundaries. Do not praise compliance produced by coercion.

Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Persent101, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Updated