vulnerable
adjective
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The History of Vulnerable
Superheroes are often depicted in comic books and movies as all-powerful, deflecting boulders and missiles in mid-air with a flick of the wrist, walking through walls, and having indestructible skeletons and whatnot. Fans know, however, that even the mightiest, meatiest protagonist is vulnerable to something, be it kryptonite or forgetting the whereabouts of one’s hammer. Vulnerable ultimately comes from the Latin noun vulnus, meaning “wound,” by way of the Late Latin adjective vulnerabilis, which English speakers adopted as vulnerable in the early 1600s. Vulnerable continues to carry its original meaning of “capable of being physically wounded,” but since the late 1600s it has also been used figuratively to suggest a defenselessness against non-physical attacks. In other words, someone (or something) can be vulnerable to criticism or failure as well as to literal wounding—even superheroes. So don’t go breaking their hearts, even if you can’t break their bones.
Synonyms
Examples of vulnerable in a Sentence
Discover Magazine, 22 June 2024
Of the congressional progressives viewed as most vulnerable to a primary challenge nationwide, Bowman is broadly seen as sitting atop that list — a reality that recent polling supports.
—Chris Sommerfeldt, New York Daily News, 22 June 2024
Many Rohingya refugees live in bamboo and tarpaulin shelters perched on hilly slopes that are vulnerable to strong winds, rain, and landslides.
—Helen Regan, CNN, 22 June 2024
Newborns are particularly vulnerable: A study from the Catalonia region of Spain found that infants in the first week of life are particularly vulnerable to heat waves.
—Kylie Mohr, The Atlantic, 22 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for vulnerable 
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Cite this Entry
“Vulnerable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vulnerable. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.
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vulnerable
adjective
Medical Definition
vulnerable
adjective
The Journal of the American Medical Association
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