Wiktionary

liable

English

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Etymology

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From Old French lier (“to bind”), from Latin ligare (“to bind, to tie”).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈlaɪ̯əbəl/, [ˈlaɪ̯əbɫ̩], [ˈlaɪ̯əbəɫ]
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -aɪəbəl

Adjective

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liable (comparative more liable, superlative most liable)

  1. Bound or obliged in law or equity; responsible; answerable.
    The surety is liable for the debt of his principal.
    • 1748, David Hume, Enquiries concerning the human understanding and concerning the principles of moral., London: Oxford University Press, published 1973, § 34:
    • 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC:
      He inveighed against the folly of making oneself liable for the debts of others; vented many bitter execrations against the brother; and concluded with wishing something could be done for the unfortunate family.
      The passion for philosophy, like that for religion, seems liable to this inconvenience
    • 2025 January 30, Tessa Solomon, “AI Art Lacking ‘Human Expression’ Cannot Be Copyrighted, US Officials Say”, in ARTnews‎[1]:
      The document states that despite its ongoing advancements, generative AI is liable to the United States’s current copyright principles, which take a strict stance on what material—human- or machine-made—qualifies for protection.
  2. Subject; susceptible; prone.
    This crime is liable to imprisonment for life.
    A man liable to heart disease.
    • 1791, John Walker, A Critical Pronouncing Dictionary […] ‎[2], London: Sold by G. G. J. and J. Robinſon, Paternoſter Row; and T. Cadell, in the Strand, →OCLC, page 211:
      ☞ This word [earth] is liable to a coarſe vulgar pronunciation, as if written Urth; […]
  3. Exposed to a certain contingency or causality, more or less probable.
    (Can we add an example for this sense?)
  4. (predicative, with to-infinitive) Likely.
    Someone is liable to slip on your icy sidewalk.
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Translations

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Anagrams

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