impressionable
Americanadjective
-
easily impressed or influenced; susceptible.
an impressionable youngster.
- Synonyms:
- suggestible, responsive, receptive
-
capable of being impressed.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of impressionable
1825–35; impression + -able; compare French impressionnable
Explanation
Someone who is impressionable is easily influenced. An impressionable person can be greatly changed by his or her experiences — not always in a good way. When someone makes an impression on you, you remember them and are influenced by them. Likewise, someone impressionable is very susceptible to being influenced, almost like a sponge that soaks up ideas. This word almost always applies to kids who are often referred to as “young and impressionable." If you call someone impressionable, it usually implies that they could be easily led astray.
Vocabulary lists containing impressionable
"The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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Catch-22
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"A Village After Dark" by Kazuo Ishiguro
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
If we can become a kid again — our most honest, impressionable, open-hearted self — in that theater seat, we’ll believe anything is possible.
From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026
Instead she holds forth on her cosmopolitan travels and philosophy of life, forming a close bond with a handful of impressionable students.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
Schools and parents have a vital role to play in "helping children identify positive role models and resist the manipulation too often used online to groom impressionable young minds," she added.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2025
But the outrage surrounding the Tates isn’t just about their influence on the minds of impressionable teenage boys.
From Slate ● Feb. 28, 2025
I’ve spent hours trying to analyze the situation, and the closest I’ve beer! able to come to a theory is that his father set a bad example at an age when John was impressionable.
From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
