Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Lacking rigidity; flexible: Describes something that does not have a fixed, stiff shape and can be bent or moved easily.
   • (Specifically of airships): Designating an airship whose shape is maintained solely by the pressure of the lifting gas inside its envelope, without any internal structural framework like a keel or girders.

Usage Examples

• General Adjective:
  • The material was nonrigid and could be folded easily.
  • They used a nonrigid hose for the water supply.
• Specific to Airships:
  • A blimp is a classic example of a nonrigid airship.
  • Unlike zeppelins, nonrigid airships rely entirely on gas pressure to maintain their form.

Advanced Usage

• Technical/Engineering Context: The term is often used to contrast with "rigid" or "semi-rigid" designs in aeronautical engineering and materials science.
  • The engineers debated the merits of a rigid versus a nonrigid hull design for the new vessel.

Variants and Related Words

• Nonrigidity (noun): The state or quality of being nonrigid.
  • The nonrigidity of the structure allowed it to absorb the shock.

Synonyms

• Flexible
• Pliable
• Limp
• Flaccid
• Unstructured (in the specific airship context)

Antonyms

• Rigid
• Stiff
• Inflexible
• Structured (in the specific airship context)

Adjective

1. designating an airship having a shape maintained only by internal gas pressure and without a supporting structure