vulnerable

Definitions

vulner (wound) + -able (able to be) = 'able to be wounded.' The literal image is a body that a weapon can pierce, but English stretched it to cover any soft, unprotected spot — emotional, financial, or technical — where harm can get in.

Common Collocations

• 1.vulnerable to易受……影响
• 2.vulnerable groups弱势群体
• 3.vulnerable people易受伤害的人
• 4.emotionally vulnerable情感脆弱的
• 5.the most vulnerable最脆弱的人群

Example Sentences

• 1.

  Young children are especially vulnerable to this kind of infection.

• 2.

  After the breakup, she felt raw and vulnerable for months.

• 3.

  The old bridge is vulnerable to flooding every spring.

• 4.

  Outdated software leaves a network vulnerable to attack.

Easily Confused

vulnerable vs fragile — fragile describes something that breaks easily under physical pressure (fragile glass, a fragile economy). vulnerable describes something open to being harmed or attacked, often by an outside threat. A glass is fragile; an unguarded border is vulnerable. People can be both.