vulnerable

Bridgezipf 4.21

Pronunciation

/ˈvʌlnərəbəl/(VUL-ner-uh-bul)

Part of speech

adjectiveneutral

Chinese

脆弱的；易受伤害的（容易受到身体或情感上的伤害或攻击）

Definition

Exposed to the possibility of being harmed physically or emotionally; lacking protection.

Word family

  • vulnerability/ˌvʌlnərəˈbɪlɪti/(n)脆弱性
  • vulnerably/ˈvʌlnərəbli/(adv)脆弱地

Collocations

  • vulnerable population
  • feel vulnerable
  • vulnerable to attack
  • vulnerable position
  • emotionally vulnerable
  • cybersecurity vulnerability

Examples

  1. 1.Children and the elderly are the most vulnerable groups during a public health emergency. (health)
  2. 2.Sharing personal struggles in a team meeting can feel vulnerable, but it often builds trust. (emotional)

Synonyms

  • susceptible/səˈsɛptɪbəl/— easily affected by something specific
  • exposed/ɪkˈspəʊzd/— left without protection
  • defenceless/dɪˈfɛnsləs/— completely without protection

Etymology

from Latin "vulnerabilis" = wounding, from "vulnerare" = to wound, from "vulnus" = wound