adjective
- capable of being extended or shaped by hammering or by pressure from rollers.
- adaptable or tractable: the malleable mind of a child.
adjective
- (esp of metal) able to be worked, hammered, or shaped under pressure or blows without breaking
- able to be influenced; pliable or tractable
adj.late 14c., “capable of being shaped by hammering,” from Middle French malleable and directly from Medieval Latin malleabilis, from malleare “to beat with a hammer,” from Latin malleus “hammer” (see mallet). Figurative sense, of persons, “capable of being adapted” first recorded 1610s. adj.
- Capable of being shaped or formed, as by hammering or pressure.
- Easily controlled or influenced; tractable.
- Capable of great deformation without breaking, when subject to compressive stress. Gold is the most malleable metal. Compare ductile.