👒 Soft and loose 💾 A data disk

floppy

42 3.7

Soft and hanging down loosely, not stiff

adjective
/ˈflɑːpi/

: blando

When he wakes up, he'll be as floppy as a damp old sock.
a floppy hat

I love a big paperback that's floppy with big text, like big font.

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Examples

So you can see how floppy the bottle is now.
She's wearing dark glasses and a big floppy hat, so we can barely see her face.

Fiction book (1990)
I want it to look floppy, very, very floppy.
Yeah, it's very floppy for sure, and very not square.
My hair's like a little floppy in here.
Big floppy bangs over the face.
I hear the pitter-patter of floppy feet coming from inside that apartment.

Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011)
I'm home now and I just put on this really floppy and comfy outfit.
One man in shorts, sandals, and a floppy gray hat seems to be everywhere.

Academic text (2006)
The puppy's ears were long and floppy, making him look even cuter.

Synonyms

saggy

vsfloppy

12 3.5

Part of a thing that hangs down loosely and is not firm, like a mattress or sweater

is softer and more limp rather than mainly caused by wear

dangly

vsfloppy

2 3.9

Something that hangs loosely and can swing or move

is limp and soft rather than focused on swinging movement

Antonyms

stiff

127 1.7

Not easy to bend or move

rigid

35 4.0

Does not bend because it is stiff

Compounds

floppy disk

Archaic

6 3.7

A thin plastic square that holds a flat magnetic disk for storing computer files

floppy disk

Specialized

1 3.7

A small image on a computer screen that means save a file

floppy infant syndrome

Formal

8.1

A baby with very weak muscles that make the body seem limp

floppy-wristed

9.8

A weak, loose movement of the wrist that looks unsure

How Floppy

sagging

1 4.1

droopy

13 3.9

floppy

42 3.7

loose

155 1.0

taut

30 4.8

Surface Forms

floppy positive

Morphology

floppy = flop (transparent) = flop + y

The adjective is a regular derivation from 'flop' + '-y' meaning characterized by flopping or hanging loosely, which is predictable for learners.

Etymology

Floppy comes from the word flop, which means 'to fall' or move down in a loose, heavy way, plus the small ending -y that makes it an adjective. So something floppy is soft and hangs or moves loosely, like a floppy hat or a dog's floppy ears.