inelastic

/ˌɪnəˈlæstɪk/

Other forms: inelastically

Things that are inelastic are stiff and unbendable. Metal is often inelastic, while rubber generally isn't.

If something's elastic, it's flexible and can easily bend back to its original shape. Inelastic is the opposite: Silly Putty is elastic, but a wooden block is inelastic. This adjective is also used figuratively in economics to mean "not changing much in response to variables." If the price of wheat always stayed the same, no matter what, it would be considered inelastic.

Definitions of inelastic

1. adjective

   not elastic
   “economists speak of an inelastic price structure”

   synonyms:

   dead

   lacking resilience or bounce

   nonresilient

   not resilient

   springless

   lacking in elasticity or vitality

   inflexible

   resistant to being bent

   antonyms:

   elastic

   capable of resuming original shape after stretching or compression; springy

   bouncy, live, lively, resilient, springy

   elastic; rebounds readily

   elasticised, elasticized

   made with strands or inserts of elastic

   expandable, expandible, expansible, expansile

   (of gases) capable of expansion

   fictile, moldable, plastic

   capable of being molded or modeled (especially of earth or clay or other soft material)

   flexible, whippy

   bending and snapping back readily without breaking

   rubberlike, rubbery

   having an elastic texture resembling rubber in flexibility or toughness

   springlike

   resembling a spring or the action of a spring

   stretch

   easily stretched

   stretchable, stretchy

   capable of being easily stretched and resuming former size or shape

   viscoelastic

   having viscous as well as elastic properties

   flexible, flexile

   able to flex; able to bend easily