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resilience

rih-ZIL-yunss /rɪˈzɪliəns/

nounB2TOEFLIELTSSATGRE

academicgeneral

The capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, adapt successfully to stress, and overcome adversity.

Refers to psychological adaptability that enables children to thrive despite significant environmental hardship or trauma.

The story behind the word. From Latin 'resilientia', coming from 'resilire' (to rebound or leap back), formed by 're-' (back) and 'salire' (to leap). It was used in physics to describe materials bouncing back before entering psychology in the 1970s.

Word relationships

adaptability: 'Adaptability' is the capacity to adjust to new conditions; 'resilience' is bouncing back after stress or hardship.
toughness: 'Toughness' implies resisting damage; 'resilience' emphasizes active recovery and positive adaptation.

vulnerability: Vulnerability is susceptibility to physical or emotional harm and stress.
fragility: Fragility describes being easily broken or overcome by adversity.

Commonly confused with

resistance: 'Resistance' means actively opposing forces; 'resilience' means recovering flexibility after bending under pressure.

Word family

resilient (adjective): Able to bounce back quickly from hardship.
resiliently (adverb): In a resilient manner.

Collocations

build resilience
foster resilience
psychological resilience
emotional resilience

Example sentences

"Strong caregiver bonds promote emotional resilience in young children facing environmental adversity." Child trauma research paper
"Teaching coping strategies in early education builds psychological resilience against future stress." School psychology journal

Memory hook

Resilience is like a spring bouncing back after being squished. Leap back up after falling down.

When not to use

Do not use to describe simple stubbornness or refusal to change position.

Fun facts

Developmental psychologist Norman Garmezy pioneered child resilience studies by observing children who thrived despite severe poverty.