Susceptible

Pronunciation

• IPA: /sʌˈsÉ›ptɪbÉ™l/

Origin

From Late Latin susceptibilis, from Latin susceptus, from suscipere.

Full definition of susceptible

Adjective

1. likely to be affected by somethingHe was susceptible to minor ailments.
2. easily influenced or tricked; credulous
3. (medicine) especially sensitive, especially to a stimulus
4. that, when subjected to a specific operation, will yield a specific resultRational numbers are susceptible of description as quotients of two integers.A properly prepared surface is susceptible of an enduring paint job.
5. vulnerable; (temporarily) defenseless
• 2013, Daniel Taylor, Rickie Lambert's debut goal gives England victory over Scotland (in The Guardian, 14 August 2013)http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/aug/14/england-scotland-international-friendlyThe visitors were being pinned back by the end of the first half. Yet Gordon Strachan's side played with great conviction and always had a chance of springing a surprise when their opponents were so susceptible at the back.

Derived terms

• suscept
• susceptibly
• susceptibility

Noun

1. (epidemiology) A person who is vulnerable to being infected by a certain disease
• In either instance a decrease in the number of susceptibles, by making the spread of virus less easy, tends towards a stage at which the infection dies out.

Coordinate terms

• immune
• infective