Able to be shaped or bent without breaking; easily influenced or changed. Used for metals that can be hammered thin and for people or ideas that are adaptable.
From Latin 'malleabilis' meaning 'that can be hammered' (from 'malleus' meaning 'hammer'). Originally a metallurgical term describing metals that could be shaped by hammering, it extended to describe adaptable personalities and flexible ideas.
The root 'malleus' is one of the three tiny bones in your ear (the hammer)! So when someone is malleable, they can be 'hammered' into new shapes without breaking—whether it's gold being beaten into leaf or a person adapting to new ideas.
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