Adjacent Words

Sensitive definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SENS'ITIVE, a. [L. sensitivus, from sensus, sentio.]
1. Having sense or feeling, or having the capacity of perceiving impressions from external objects; as sensitive soul; sensitive appetite; sensitive faculty.
2. That affects the senses; as sensitive objects.
3. Pertaining to the senses, or to sensation; depending on sensation; as sensitive motions; sensitive muscular motions excited by irritation.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: responsive to physical stimuli; "a mimosa's leaves are sensitive to touch"; "a sensitive voltmeter"; "sensitive skin"; "sensitive to light" [ant: insensitive]
2: being susceptible to the attitudes, feelings, or circumstances of others; "sensitive to the local community and its needs" [ant: insensitive]
3: able to feel or perceive; "even amoeba are sensible creatures"; "the more sensible parts of the skin" [syn: sensible, sensitive] [ant: insensible]
4: hurting; "the tender spot on his jaw" [syn: sensitive, sore, raw, tender]
5: of or pertaining to classified information or matters affecting national security n
1: someone who serves as an intermediary between the living and the dead; "he consulted several mediums" [syn: medium, spiritualist, sensitive]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin sensitivus, probably alteration of sensativus, from sensatus sensate Date: 15th century 1. sensory 2 2. a. receptive to sense impressions b. capable of being stimulated or excited by external agents (as light, gravity, or contact) <sensitive cells> 3. highly responsive or susceptible: as a. (1) easily hurt or damaged; especially easily hurt emotionally (2) delicately aware of the attitudes and feelings of others b. excessively or abnormally susceptible ; hypersensitive <sensitive to egg protein> c. readily fluctuating in price or demand <sensitive commodities> d. capable of indicating minute differences ; delicate <sensitive scales> e. readily affected or changed by various agents (as light or mechanical shock) <a photographic emulsion sensitive to red light> f. highly radiosensitive 4. a. concerned with highly classified government information or involving discretionary authority over important policy matters <sensitive documents> b. calling for tact, care, or caution in treatment ; touchy <a sensitive issue like race relations> 5. having or showing concern for a specified matter — usually used in combination <a price-sensitive customer> <environmentally sensitive policies> Synonyms: see liable • sensitively adverb • sensitiveness noun II. noun Date: 1838 1. a person having occult or psychical abilities 2. a sensitive person

U.S. Military Dictionary

Requiring special protection from disclosure that could cause embarrassment, compromise, or threat to the security of the sponsoring power. May be applied to an agency, installation, person, position, document, material, or activity.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & n. --adj. 1 (often foll. by to) very open to or acutely affected by external stimuli or mental impressions; having sensibility. 2 (of a person) easily offended or emotionally hurt. 3 (often foll. by to) (of an instrument etc.) responsive to or recording slight changes. 4 (often foll. by to) a (of photographic materials) prepared so as to respond (esp. rapidly) to the action of light. b (of any material) readily affected by or responsive to external action. 5 (of a topic etc.) subject to restriction of discussion to prevent embarrassment, ensure security, etc. 6 (of a market) liable to quick changes of price. --n. a person who is sensitive (esp. to supposed occult influences). Phrases and idioms: sensitive plant 1 a plant whose leaves curve downwards and leaflets fold together when touched, esp. mimosa. 2 a sensitive person. Derivatives: sensitively adv. sensitiveness n. Etymology: ME, = sensory, f. OF sensitif -ive or med.L sensitivus, irreg. f. L sentire sens- feel

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sensitive Sen"si*tive, a. [F. sensitif. See Sense.] 1. Having sense of feeling; possessing or exhibiting the capacity of receiving impressions from external objects; as, a sensitive soul. 2. Having quick and acute sensibility, either to the action of external objects, or to impressions upon the mind and feelings; highly susceptible; easily and acutely affected. She was too sensitive to abuse and calumny. --Macaulay. 3. (a) (Mech.) Having a capacity of being easily affected or moved; as, a sensitive thermometer; sensitive scales. (b) (Chem. & Photog.) Readily affected or changed by certain appropriate agents; as, silver chloride or bromide, when in contact with certain organic substances, is extremely sensitive to actinic rays. 4. Serving to affect the sense; sensible. [R.] A sensitive love of some sensitive objects. --Hammond. 5. Of or pertaining to sensation; depending on sensation; as, sensitive motions; sensitive muscular motions excited by irritation. --E. Darwin. Sensitive fern (Bot.), an American fern (Onoclea sensibilis), the leaves of which, when plucked, show a slight tendency to fold together. Sensitive flame (Physics), a gas flame so arranged that under a suitable adjustment of pressure it is exceedingly sensitive to sounds, being caused to roar, flare, or become suddenly shortened or extinguished, by slight sounds of the proper pitch. Sensitive joint vetch (Bot.), an annual leguminous herb ([AE]schynomene hispida), with sensitive foliage. Sensitive paper, paper prepared for photographic purpose by being rendered sensitive to the effect of light. Sensitive plant. (Bot.) (a) A leguminous plant (Mimosa pudica, or M. sensitiva, and other allied species), the leaves of which close at the slightest touch. (b) Any plant showing motions after irritation, as the sensitive brier (Schrankia) of the Southern States, two common American species of Cassia (C. nictitans, and C. Cham[ae]crista), a kind of sorrel (Oxalis sensitiva), etc.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. If you are sensitive to other people's needs, problems, or feelings, you show understanding and awareness of them. The classroom teacher must be sensitive to a child's needs... He was always so sensitive and caring. ADJ: oft ADJ to n [approval] • sensitively The abuse of women needs to be treated seriously and sensitively. ADV: usu ADV with v • sensitivity A good relationship involves concern and sensitivity for each other's feelings. N-UNCOUNT: oft N for n 2. If you are sensitive about something, you are easily worried and offended when people talk about it. Young people are very sensitive about their appearance... Take it easy. Don't be so sensitive. ADJ: oft ADJ about n • sensitivity (sensitivities) ...people who suffer extreme sensitivity about what others think... N-VAR: oft N about n 3. A sensitive subject or issue needs to be dealt with carefully because it is likely to cause disagreement or make people angry or upset. Employment is a very sensitive issue. ...politically sensitive matters. ADJ • sensitivity Due to the obvious sensitivity of the issue he would not divulge any details. N-UNCOUNT: oft N of n 4. Sensitive documents or reports contain information that needs to be kept secret and dealt with carefully. He instructed staff to shred sensitive documents. ADJ: usu ADJ n 5. Something that is sensitive to a physical force, substance, or treatment is easily affected by it and often harmed by it. ...a chemical which is sensitive to light. ...gentle cosmetics for sensitive skin. ADJ: oft ADJ to n • sensitivity ...the sensitivity of cells to damage by chemotherapy. N-UNCOUNT: oft N of n 6. A sensitive piece of scientific equipment is capable of measuring or recording very small changes. ...an extremely sensitive microscope. ADJ: usu ADJ n • sensitivity ...the sensitivity of the detector.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Sentient, perceptive. 2. Impressible, easily affected.

Moby Thesaurus

accurate, acute, adaptable, affected, agitable, algetic, allergic, anaphylactic, angry, appreciative, attuned, aware, bendable, bending, burning, censorious, chafed, choicy, choosy, cognizant, compliant, conscientious, conscious, critical, delicate, differential, discriminate, discriminating, discriminative, disposed, distinctive, distinguishing, ductile, edgy, elastic, emotionable, emotional, emotionally unstable, empathetic, empathic, eruptive, exact, exacting, excitable, explosive, exposed, extensible, extensile, fabricable, facile, fastidious, feeling, festering, fictile, fiery, fine, flexible, flexile, flexuous, formable, formative, galled, giving, goosy, high-mettled, high-spirited, high-strung, highly emotional, hot-tempered, hyperesthetic, hyperpathic, hypersensitive, impressed, impressible, impressionable, inclined, inflamed, inflammable, influenced, irascible, irritable, irritated, itchy, keen, knowing, like putty, limber, lissome, lithe, lithesome, malleable, meticulous, mettlesome, miffy, moldable, nervous, nice, obnoxious, open, overrefined, oversensible, oversensitive, overtender, particular, passible, perceiving, perceptive, perfectionistic, perturbable, petulant, picky, plastic, pliable, pliant, precarious, precise, precisianistic, predisposed, prickly, priggish, prone, prudish, punctilious, puristic, puritanic, quarrelsome, quick-tempered, rankling, raw, reactive, receptive, red, refined, responsive, scrupulous, seeing, selective, sensational, sensatory, sensible, sensile, sensimotor, sensorial, sensorimotor, sensory, sensual, sensuous, sentient, sequacious, shapable, sharp, skittish, smarting, soft, softhearted, sore, springy, startlish, strict, subject, submissive, subtle, supersensitive, supple, susceptible, susceptive, sympathetic, tactful, temperamental, tender, tenderhearted, tense, testy, tetchy, thin-skinned, ticklish, tingling, touchy, tractable, tractile, tricky, understanding, unstable, volatile, volcanic, vulnerable, warmhearted, whippy, willowy, yielding