Rigidity
/rɪˈdʒɪdɪti/noun
The quality or state of being stiff, inflexible, or unable to bend.
Did you know?Rigidity comes through Latin rigidus, from rigere, meaning “to be stiff” or “to stand rigid,” a root tied to the eerie image of something frozen in place.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*reig-
“to stretch, straighten, make stiff”
Latin
Latin
rigere
“to be stiff, to stand rigid”
Latin
Latin
rigidus
“stiff, severe, inflexible”
Late Latin
Latin
rigiditas
“stiffness, rigidity”
Old French
Old French
rigidité
“rigidity, stiffness”
Modern English
English
rigidity
“the quality of being stiff or inflexible”