Bharati Mukherjee

In traditional Hindu families like ours, men provided and women were provided for. My father was a patriarch and I a pliant daughter. The neighborhood I'd grown up in was homogeneously Hindu, Bengali-speaking, and middle-class. I didn't expect myself to ever disobey or disappoint my father by setting my own goals and taking charge of my future.

Indian Writer

Winnie Byanyima

Money doesn't just buy a nice car; it also buys better education or healthcare. Increasingly, it can buy impunity from justice, a pliant media, favorable laws, business advantage, and even elections. This, in turn, perpetuates the policies that allow a tiny elite to accumulate ever more wealth at the expense of the majority.

Ugandan Politician

Graydon Carter

A workday lunch that lasts as long as a transcontinental flight is an impossibility for all but the most pliant and footloose of food tourists. To get in the game, you need a thick wallet, an adventurous palate, and a whole lot of time.

American Journalist

Indicates an object's or material's ability to bend easily without breaking or permanent deformation.

Physical Flexibility

Sometimes used metaphorically to describe abstract concepts that can be 'shaped' or influenced.

Metaphorical Use

Don't confuse 'pliant' with 'compliant.' 'Pliant' is about physical bendability, not necessarily following rules.

Common Mistake

Used to describe someone who is easily influenced emotionally, not just logically.

Emotional Influence

Can imply a lack of firm personal stance or principles when describing a person.

Negative Implication

Suggests a person might be controlled or directed by others, not always by force.

Easily Controlled

Can describe a positive ability to adjust to new situations or environments quickly.