immunity
Americannoun
-
immunities
plural
-
the state of being immune from or insusceptible to a particular disease or the like.
- Antonyms:
- susceptibility
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the condition that permits either natural or acquired resistance to disease.
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the ability of a cell to react immunologically in the presence of an antigen.
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exemption from any natural or usual liability.
- Antonyms:
- liability
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exemption from obligation, service, duty, or liability to taxation, jurisdiction, etc..
The ambassador claimed diplomatic immunity when they arrested him for reckless driving.
- Synonyms:
- prerogative, liberty, license, franchise
- Antonyms:
- liability
-
Law. exemption from criminal prosecution or legal liability or punishment on certain conditions.
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special privilege.
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Ecclesiastical.
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the exemption of ecclesiastical persons and things from secular or civil liabilities, duties, and burdens.
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a particular exemption of this kind.
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noun
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the ability of an organism to resist disease, either through the activities of specialized blood cells or antibodies produced by them in response to natural exposure or inoculation ( active immunity ) or by the injection of antiserum or the transfer of antibodies from a mother to her baby via the placenta or breast milk ( passive immunity ) See also acquired immunity natural immunity
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freedom from obligation or duty, esp exemption from tax, duty, legal liability, etc
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any special privilege granting immunity
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the exemption of ecclesiastical persons or property from various civil obligations or liabilities
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The protection of the body from a disease caused by an infectious agent, such as a bacterium or virus. Immunity may be natural (that is, inherited) or acquired.
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See also acquired immunity
Synonym Usage
See exemption.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of immunity
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French immunite, from Latin immūnitāt-, stem of immūnitās “freedom or exemption from public charges or burdens.” See immune, -ity
Explanation
Immunity means exemption or resistance. If you're protected against something, you have immunity to it. Your new silver clothes just might grant you immunity from getting thrown in jail by the fashion police. In the late 14th century, the noun immunity, which means “exempt from service or obligation,” developed from the Latin immunitatem, which has nearly identical meaning. Break that word down even further, and you get immunis, meaning “exempt, free,” from in "not" and munis, meaning “performing services.” In a medical sense, immunity is “protection from disease.” Your annual flu shot tries to give you immunity from, or make you insusceptible to, the illness.
Vocabulary lists containing immunity
The Constitution of the United States
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"On Women's Right to Vote" by Susan B. Anthony
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Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress
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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.
See Examples For:
Vaccines, masking, improved indoor air quality and acquired immunity have all kept the virus at bay so that morgue trucks no longer fill the streets.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
Law professor Tracey Maclin of the University of Florida told AFP that if the Senate panel had truly wanted Fauci to speak frankly, they would have offered him immunity.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Supreme Court ruled that the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s amateurism rules violated federal law, ending the NCAA’s longstanding immunity from corporate regulation.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
A separate press release also placed limits on tax audit immunity granted to Trump, two of his sons and their businesses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
“It seems clear to me that there should be oversight for the granting of immunity, just as the selection committee provides oversight for gleaning.”
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
He celebrated the “government, which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance—but generously affording to all Liberty of conscience, and immunities of Citizenship.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2025
The focus of these hearings is to aid the judges in answering the question posed by the UN General Assembly, specifically whether Israel acted unlawfully in overriding the immunities and privileges of a UN body.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2025
“The phone records may add to the unease of some judges and justices over the fight over presidential immunities and privileges,” said Jonathan Turley, who teaches Constitutional Law at George Washington University.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 29, 2023
It said "the unilateral removal of the privileges and immunities that provide for the safety and security of diplomats is not consistent with the principles or the effective functioning of the Vienna Convention."
From Reuters ● Oct. 21, 2023
“This place isn’t known for cleaning their germy dishes, but it’ll build up your immunities before you get home. You can go back to Jankburg the strongest little boy around.”
From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle
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.
