liable
Americanadjective
-
legally responsible.
You are liable for the damage caused by your action.
- Synonyms:
- accountable, answerable
-
subject or susceptible.
to be liable to heart disease.
-
likely or apt.
He's liable to get angry.
adjective
-
legally obliged or responsible; answerable
-
susceptible or exposed; subject
-
probable, likely, or capable
it's liable to happen soon
Usage
Liable is often interchangeable with likely in constructions with a following infinitive where the sense is that of probability: The Sox are liable (or likely ) to sweep the Series. Some usage guides, however, say that liable can be used only in contexts in which the outcome is undesirable: The picnic is liable to be spoiled by rain. This use occurs often in formal writing but not to the exclusion of use in contexts in which the outcome is desirable: The drop in unemployment is liable to stimulate the economy. Apt may also be used in place of liable or likely in all the foregoing examples. See also apt, likely.
The use of liable to to mean likely to was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable
Other Word Forms
- liableness noun
- nonliable adjective
- preliable adjective
- unliable adjective
Etymology
Origin of liable
First recorded in 1535–45; from Anglo-French “to bind,” from Latin ligāre ) + -able
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.
County Superior Court jury decided last week that the city was 62.5% liable, the rescue group was 25% liable and Horta was 12.5% liable for medical expenses and pain and suffering.
From Los Angeles Times
I saw right away that if I didn’t say something to ease Mama’s mind she was liable to start laying down the law about my going to the bottoms.
From Literature
And a guilty verdict could also have implications for other mountain climbers, and how much they could be liable for their companions in the future.
From BBC
He wasn’t consulted on a decision to transfer one of his subordinates to another division and worried he would be legally liable for the move.
Prosecutors in Paris will seek to establish whether the baby formula producers are liable for distributing a tainted product.
From BBC
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.
