stiff or unyielding; not pliant or flexible; hard:
a rigid strip of metal.
2.
firmly fixed or set.
3.
inflexible, strict, or severe:
a rigid disciplinarian; rigid rules of social behavior.
4.
exacting; thorough; rigorous:
a rigid examination.
5.
so as to meet precise standards; stringent:
lenses ground to rigid specifications.
6.
Mechanics. of, pertaining to, or noting a body in which the distance between any pair of points remains fixed under all forces; having infinite values for its shear modulus, bulk modulus, and Young's modulus.
7.
Aeronautics.
(of an airship or dirigible) having a form maintained by a stiff, unyielding structure contained within the envelope.
pertaining to a helicopter rotor that is held fixedly at its root.
Origin
1530-40; < Latinrigidus, equivalent to rig(ēre) to be stiff, stiffen + -idus-id4
Certain occupational courses such as nursing and aircraft maintenance are much more rigid and consistent across instructors.
But the method they actually use is surprisingly close to how animals with rigid skeletons-including humans-do it, scientists say.
It consists of a light yet rigid foam made of little beams and membranes.
The transistors are sandwiches of metals and insulators that must be laid down on a flat surface, which produces a rigid display.
Though he was a scientist by training, there was nothing rigid or predictable or orderly about him.
She is still surprised by the rigid manners, the deference and silences in her husband's family.
Honorably, the movie is not the usual rigid-arc fable of redemption.
The readiness is all-the ability to discern opportunities and not be hemmed in by rigid abstractions.
From his earliest years he was subjected to a rigid system of intellectual discipline.
There are many stories current about the rigid manner in which his laws were enforced.
British Dictionary definitions for rigid
rigid
/ˈrɪdʒɪd/
adjective
1.
not bending; physically inflexible or stiff: a rigid piece of plastic
2.
unbending; rigorously strict; severe: rigid rules
adverb
3.
completely or excessively: the lecture bored him rigid
Derived Forms
rigidly, adverb rigidity, rigidness, noun
Word Origin
C16: from Latin rigidus, from rigēre to be stiff
Word Origin and History for rigid
adj.
early 15c., from Latin rigidus "hard, stiff, rough, severe," from rigere "be stiff," from PIE *reig- "stretch (tight), bind tightly, make fast" (cf. Old Irish riag "torture," Middle High German ric "band, string"). Related: Rigidly.