as in amenability
a desire or disposition to please
the complaisance of his girlfriend is such that she meekly goes along with everything he says
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Recent Examples of complaisance
The steadfast pushback against the administration might appear on the surface to be an encouraging trend, given the complaisance of the Republican majorities in Congress and weak-kneed capitulation to Trump by leaders of institutions such as universities and major corporations.
—
Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Yet electing to be private doesn’t amount to complaisance or complicity.
—Lesley M.m. Blume, Town & Country, 6 Dec. 2022
Sammy’s awareness of his mother’s infidelity, his father’s complaisance, and how both were relieved by his creative Boy Scout merit-badge projects and fantasies requires a separate article.
—Armond White, National Review, 16 Nov. 2022
What is lost is the look of complaisance that defines young founders looking for capital.
—Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 2 Mar. 2021
There are more emphatic reasons for the market’s complaisance.
—Jeff Sommer, New York Times, 12 Nov. 2016
Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Yet electing to be private doesn’t amount to complaisance or complicity.
—Lesley M.m. Blume, Town & Country, 6 Dec. 2022
Sammy’s awareness of his mother’s infidelity, his father’s complaisance, and how both were relieved by his creative Boy Scout merit-badge projects and fantasies requires a separate article.
—Armond White, National Review, 16 Nov. 2022
What is lost is the look of complaisance that defines young founders looking for capital.
—Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 2 Mar. 2021
There are more emphatic reasons for the market’s complaisance.
—Jeff Sommer, New York Times, 12 Nov. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for complaisance
Noun
-
From the reusable water bottles each guest receives upon check-in to their latest venue, the Glasshouse, which is made in part from stone native to the area and is entirely climate-controlled through geothermal heating, eco-friendliness is baked into the brief at Cedar Lakes.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Its sustainability efforts go beyond basic nods to eco-friendliness.—
Christopher Elliott,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
But despite the pleasantness, there are still some areas where the graphics are lacking.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
14 Nov. 2025
-
The farmer’s tendency to pursue high yields obscured the delicate pleasantness this grape gives when handled carefully.—
Paul Caputo,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
There is a politician-esque amiability to Swift’s time with Colbert, a desperation to please all possible parties while offering up nothing new.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
11 Dec. 2025
-
No special effects were required to trigger Curry's stark drift from amiability to horrifying emptiness.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
But for Coles, his indoctrination to law enforcement has been a different level of submissiveness.—
Dan Pompei,
New York Times,
2 Dec. 2025
-
In Killers of the Flower Moon, his Ernest Burkhart starts off as a mopey, weak-minded World War One veteran, eager to do anything for his godfather uncle (Robert De Niro), but there’s still a certain likability to his dim-bulb submissiveness.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
2 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Complaisance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/complaisance. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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