Robust means strong, healthy, and able to withstand difficult conditions. It can describe people, systems, flavors, or arguments that are full and powerful rather than weak or delicate.
From Latin *robustus* “strong, hardy,” originally “oaken,” from *robur* “oak, strength.” Oaks were symbols of toughness and durability.
Calling something robust is like saying it has the strength of an oak tree—that metaphor is literally built into the word. In science and engineering, a “robust result” is one that still stands strong even when conditions change.
“Robust” has roots in associations with physical strength and toughness, historically coded as masculine traits, and has sometimes been used to valorize stereotypically male behaviors or bodies. In technical fields, it is now mostly abstract but can still carry subtle connotations of hardness over flexibility or care.
Use “robust” for systems, methods, or evidence without tying it to stereotyped masculine toughness. When describing people, avoid gendered assumptions about who is or isn’t “robust.”
["resilient","reliable","hardy","strong (context‑dependent)"]
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