What does lissom mean?
Lissom is an adjective describing something that moves with a graceful combination of suppleness and flexibility. It is especially suited to people, animals, and their movements: a dancer may have lissom limbs, a cat may move in a lissom way, and a piece of music may have a lissom rhythm. The word is literary and somewhat old-fashioned, so it often gives a sentence a lyrical or elevated tone. Although ordinary words such as “supple,” “lithe,” and “graceful” can convey similar ideas, lissom concentrates them in a single, evocative term. Its emphasis is usually on the quality of movement rather than flexibility alone, making it especially effective for describing dance, sport, animal motion, or an elegant physical performance.
adjectiveLissom means supple, flexible, and graceful, especially in the movement of a person or animal.
- Flexible or supple and graceful in movement.
"The dancer moved across the stage with lissom grace."
"Her lissom fingers quickly rearranged the coloured threads."
"The young horse raced across the field with lissom, effortless strides."
Lissom is a literary word for grace in motion: think of a dancer or acrobat bending, turning, and moving with supple ease.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does lissom come from?
Lissom is a 19th-century English word generally treated as an alteration of the older form “lissome.” That form and related words such as “lithe” belong to a family of expressions describing smoothness, suppleness, or graceful movement.
Related word forms
How lissom is actually used
Chiefly literary and sometimes archaic in tone. It is usually applied to the body, limbs, movement, or an animal and conveys graceful suppleness rather than merely physical flexibility.