amenable

American  

[uh-mee-nuh-buhl, uh-men-uh-] / əˈmi nə bəl, əˈmɛn ə- /

adjective

1. ready or willing to answer, act, agree, or yield; open to influence, persuasion, or advice; agreeable; submissive; tractable.

   an amenable servant.

   Synonyms:

   easy, docile, manageable

   Antonyms:

   recalcitrant, stubborn

2. liable to be called to account; answerable; legally responsible.

   You are amenable for this debt.

3. capable of or agreeable to being tested, tried, analyzed, etc.

   Synonyms:

   responsible, accountable

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amenable British  

/ əˈmiːnəbəl /

adjective

1. open or susceptible to suggestion; likely to listen, cooperate, etc

2. accountable for behaviour to some authority; answerable

3. capable of being or liable to be tested, judged, etc

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Other Word Forms

• amenability noun
• amenableness noun
• amenably adverb
• nonamenability noun
• nonamenable adjective
• nonamenableness noun
• nonamenably adverb
• unamenable adjective
• unamenably adverb

Etymology

Origin of amenable

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Anglo-French, equivalent to Middle French amen(er) “to lead to” ( a- a- ⁵ + mener, from Late Latin mināre “to push, impel,” from Latin minārī “to threaten”) + -able -able

Explanation

If your friends want to try sky diving and you're amenable to the idea, sounds like you're going to be jumping out of a plane. If a person or thing is amenable to something, they are ready, willing, or responsive. Note that amenable is often followed by the preposition to, which makes amenable mean "able to be controlled or affected by something," as in: "They are usually amenable to our wishes" or "Her heart condition is not amenable to treatment." An amenable personality is open to influence or control and is willing to agree or yield.

Example Sentences

The firm’s new funding comes amid a wave of venture-capital investment in U.S. defense-technology startups, as the Pentagon has in recent years grown increasingly amenable to Silicon Valley’s pitches.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

Learning that he “was not amenable to removal,” the agents dropped him off at a coffee shop without informing his attorneys or family.

From Slate • Mar. 19, 2026

Rather than trying to address specific locations, “we’re going to look at similarities in the context of those disparate locations that might amenable to some more global strategies,” Nicholas said.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 10, 2026

There are other players in the regime who may not prove as amenable.

From Salon • Jan. 6, 2026

“I’d be amenable to that,” Stephanie said, and I heard Erin gasp.

From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan

Related Words

• agreeable
• responsive
• susceptible