lissome
adjective

- (of a person or their body) thin, supple, and graceful

- bending or moving gracefully or with ease and lightness; lithe, supple, limber, agile, etc.

Oxford Languages, Collins Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

Lissome (sometimes spelled lissom) is a gently altered form of its synonym, lithesome. While lissome tends to be the more popular choice these days, the two words have similar pasts. They both appeared in the 18th century, and they both trace back to the much older lithe, which first appeared in English during the 14th century and comes from an Old English word meaning "gentle”.

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BEND DON’T BREAK!

In nature, survival belongs not to the strongest, but to the most flexible.

The lovely word “lissome” represents the balance between strength and flexibility. Unlike rigid strength, lissome movement allows for both power and adaptability. Consider how a bamboo stem bends in strong winds, or how a cheetah's lissome spine enables both explosive speed and tight turning ability.

In modern architecture, the Shanghai Tower, China's tallest building, employs a lissome-inspired design that allows it to twist and flex in high winds rather than resist them. The twisting form reduces wind loads by 24%, resulting in significant material savings, approximately $58 million in building materials. The spiral form facilitates rainwater collection for use in heating and air conditioning systems and contributes to a targeted 21% reduction in energy use compared to a conventional design. The Shanghai Tower's design shows how principles inspired by nature can be applied to create more efficient, stable, and sustainable super-tall structures.

There’s also a lesson here for our daily lives. Being lissome means being flexible enough to handle life’s twists with grace and moving through life’s challenges fluidly rather than with rigidity. Physical or mental flexibility allows us to stay poised,… especially when faced with obstacles.

Helga & Paul Smith

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SYNONYMS

agile (as a cat), balletic, bendable, bendy, cat-like, dexterous, elastic, feline, flexible, fluid, graceful (as a gazelle), light as a feather, light on one's feet, light-footed, limber, LISSOME, lithe, lithesome, malleable, moves like silk, nimble, pliant, quick on one's feet, rubber-like, serpentine, sinuous, sleek, slender, silky (smooth), smooth, springy, supple, svelte, swan-like, willowy

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FUNNY SAMPLE SENTENCES

"The contractor promised a LISSOME design,... but delivered a concrete cube."

"Her LISSOME cat managed to squeeze through a mail slot... with the neighbor's steak."

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