sen ‧ si ‧ tive S3 W3 /ˈsensətɪv, ˈsensɪtɪv/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Word Family: adjective : ↑ sensible , ↑ insensible , ↑ senseless , ↑ sensitive ≠ ↑ insensitive , ↑ sensory , ↑ nonsensical , ↑ insensate ; noun : ↑ sense ≠ ↑ nonsense , ↑ sensibility ≠ ↑ insensibility , ↑ sensitivity ≠ ↑ insensitivity , ↑ senselessness , ↑ sensitization , ↑ sensor ; adverb : ↑ sensibly , ↑ senselessly , ↑ sensitively ≠ ↑ insensitively ; verb : ↑ sense , ↑ sensitize ]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: sensitif , from Medieval Latin sensitivus , from Latin sensus ; ⇨ ↑ sense 1 ]
1 . UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE able to understand other people’s feelings and problems OPP insensitive :
a sensitive and intelligent young man
sensitive to
It’s made me much more sensitive to the needs of the disabled.
2 . EASILY OFFENDED easily upset or offended by events or things that people say:
a very sensitive child
sensitive about
Laura’s sensitive about her weight.
sensitive to
Throughout her career she remained very sensitive to criticism.
sensitive soul British English (=someone who is easily upset by small or unimportant things) ⇨ ↑ hypersensitive
3 . EASILY AFFECTED easily affected or damaged by something such as a substance or temperature:
Wetlands are environmentally sensitive areas.
a baby’s sensitive skin
sensitive to
Older people tend to be very sensitive to cold.
Increasing numbers of people are sensitive to cow’s milk.
4 . SITUATION/SUBJECT a situation or subject that is sensitive needs to be dealt with very carefully, because it is secret or because it may offend people:
Abortion is a very sensitive issue.
sensitive matters such as national security
highly sensitive information
5 . REACTING TO CHANGES reacting to very small changes in light, temperature, position etc:
a highly sensitive electronic camera
light-sensitive/heat-sensitive etc
light-sensitive photographic paper
6 . ART/MUSIC ETC able to understand or express yourself through art, music, literature etc:
a very sensitive performance
—sensitively adverb :
It is an issue which needs to be handled sensitively.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ secret known about by only a few people, who have agreed not to tell anyone else:
a secret meeting place
|
The details of the proposal must remain secret.
▪ confidential used about information, especially in business or government, that is secret and not intended to be shown or told to other people:
a highly confidential report
|
Employees’ personal details are treated as strictly confidential.
▪ classified used about information that the government has ordered to be kept secret from most people:
He was accused of passing on classified information to the Russians in the 1950s.
▪ sensitive used about information that is kept secret because there would be problems if the wrong people knew it:
A teenager managed to hack into sensitive US Air Force files.
▪ covert [only before noun] used about things that are done secretly, especially by a government or official organization:
a CIA covert operation
▪ undercover [usually before noun] used about things that are done secretly by the police in order to catch criminals or find out information:
Detectives arrested the suspect after a five-day undercover operation.
▪ underground an underground organization or newspaper is one that operates or is produced secretly and opposes the government:
Her father was a member of the underground resistance movement in France during World War II.
▪ clandestine /klænˈdestən, klænˈdestɪn/ secret and often illegal or immoral:
clandestine meetings
|
his involvement in a clandestine operation to sell arms to Iran
|
a clandestine love affair
▪ hush-hush informal used about information or activities that are kept officially secret:
He was put in charge of some hush-hush military project.
|
I’ve no idea what he does – it’s all very hush-hush.