immune

American  

[ih-myoon] / ɪˈmyun /

adjective

1. protected from a disease or the like, as by inoculation or by having the necessary antibodies due to a previous infection (often followed byto ).

   Most adults in the study were immune to yellow fever due to previous vaccination.

   Since I had already had measles, I assumed I was immune.

2. of or relating to the production of antibodies or lymphocytes that can react with a specific antigen.

   Crohn's disease is an abnormal immune reaction that causes the immune system to attack cells in the lining of the digestive tract.

3. exempt or protected.

   He thought being rich made him immune from punishment, but he went to jail for his crimes.

4. not responsive or susceptible.

   Over time writers are supposed to grow immune to criticism and let bad reviews roll off our backs.

   You're certainly highly resistant to argument, and also immune to new ideas.

---

noun

1. a person who is immune.

immune British  

/ ɪˈmjuːn /

adjective

1. protected against a specific disease by inoculation or as the result of innate or acquired resistance

2. relating to or conferring immunity See antibody

   an immune body

3. unsusceptible (to) or secure (against)

   immune to inflation

4. exempt from obligation, penalty, etc

---

noun

1. an immune person or animal

Other Word Forms

• hyperimmune
  adjective
• nonimmune
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of immune

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin immūnis “exempt,” from im- im- ² + -mūnis ( see common)

Explanation

To be immune to something is to be resistant to it. If you had chickenpox as a child, you should be immune to it now. The adjective immune comes from the Latin word immunis, which means “exempt from public service.” If you're protected — or exempt — from disease, injury, work, insults, or accusations, then you're immune. Vaccinations serve to make people immune to certain diseases. Being a diplomat makes people immune to certain legal persecution. To be immune to bullying means that you don’t let the bad behavior of your peers get you down.

Example Sentences

"Nuclear infrastructure has generally been treated as a red line in the region. The message is: no strategic infrastructure in the Gulf is completely immune."

From Barron's • May 18, 2026

Unlike chemotherapy, which kills healthy and cancerous cells alike, these medicines essentially empower patients’ immune systems to correctly recognize and attack tumors.

From Salon • May 15, 2026

Few, if any of us, are immune to that.

From MarketWatch • May 15, 2026

One reason might be that the mother’s immune system is adjusting to protect the baby.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

Only one member of his audience seemed immune to the magic of it.

From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke

Related Words

• exempt
• resistant
• unaffected