elastic, resilient, springy, flexible, supple mean able to endure strain without being permanently injured . elastic implies the property of resisting deformation by stretching. resilient implies the ability to recover shape quickly when the deforming force or pressure is removed. RESILIENT definition: 1. able to be happy, successful, etc. again after something difficult or bad has happened: 2. able…. When something is strong and able to recover from damage quickly , call it resilient. If you're rough on your toys, the ones that don't break are resilient. Formed from the Latin verb resilire, "to leap back," a resilient person is able to recover from an illness or a bad experience quickly. Define resilient . resilient synonyms, resilient pronunciation, resilient translation, English dictionary definition of resilient . adj. 1. Capable of returning to an original shape or position, as after having been compressed.