Compliant means willing to do as you are told. A compliant workforce, too compliant, a compliant patient.
Of people it is faintly critical, suggesting agreement without judgement. Of things it is neutral and technical — compliant with the regulations means meeting them. In engineering, a compliant material is one that flexes, which is the opposite of stiff.
1adjectivecompliantWilling to do as you are told.
“The prisoners were calm and compliant, so the guards removed their handcuffs.”
2adjectivemeetingMeeting a standard or rule.
“All new buildings must be compliant with the latest fire safety rules.”
compliant is a quality of obedience.
Also accepted in games: biddable, obedient
Proto-Indo-European
*pleh₁-
Proto-Indo-European
*ḱóm — beside, near; by, with
Latin
complēre
Old French
compli
Spanish
cumplir — to complete, fulfil
Catalan
complir — to complete, fulfil; to carry out
Italian
complire
English
comply
English, today
compliant
Built from
From comply + -ant. comply comes from Italian complire, Catalan complir (“to complete, fulfil; to carry out”), Spanish cumplir (“to complete, fulfil”), (alternatively from Old French compli), from Latin complēre, from compleō (“to finish, complete; to fulfil”), from com- (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ḱóm (“beside, near; by, with”)) + pleō (“to fill; to fulfil”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European pleh₁- (“to fill”)). The word is very close to the French verb complaire which means to satisfy or to please. The word is also cognate with Old French complir (“to accomplish, complete; to do”) (modern French accomplir (“to accomplish, achieve”)). Compare complete, compliment.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA