li·a·ble (l   -bl)adj. 1. Legally obligated; responsible: liable for military service. See Synonyms at responsible. 2. At risk of or subject to experiencing or suffering something unpleasant. Used with to: liable to criminal charges; liable to diabetes. 3. Likely. Often used with reference to an unfavorable outcome: In a depression banks are liable to fail. [Middle English, probably from Old French lier, to bind, from Latin lig  re; see leig- in Indo-European roots.]Usage Note: Liable, apt, and likely are often used interchangeably in constructions with infinitives, as in Zach is liable to lose, Zach is apt to lose, and Zach is likely to lose, but the three words have subtle distinctions in meaning. A traditional rule holds that liable should be used only if the subject would be adversely affected by the outcome expressed by the infinitive. The rule therefore permits Tim is liable to fall out of his chair if he doesn't sit up straight but not The chair is liable to be slippery, though constructions of the latter type have long been common in reputable writing. · Apt usually suggests that the subject has a natural tendency enhancing the probability of an outcome and that the speaker is somewhat apprehensive about the outcome. Thus apt is more naturally used in a sentence like The fuel pump is apt to give out at any minute than in Even the clearest instructions are apt to be misinterpreted by those idiots (since the instructions are not at fault) or in The fuel pump is apt to give you no problems for the life of the car (since there is no reason that the speaker should regard such an outcome as unfortunate). · Likely is more general than either liable or apt. It ascribes no particular property to the subject that would enhance the probability of the outcome. Thus, while John is apt to lose the election may suggest that the loss will result from something John does or fails to do, John is likely to lose the election does not. Nor does it suggest anything about the desirability of the outcome from the point of view of either the speaker or the subject. See Usage Note at likely. |
liable
Adjective
1. probable or likely: weak and liable to give way
2. commonly suffering a condition: he's liable to get colds in his chest
3. legally obliged or responsible; answerable [Old French lier to bind]
USAGE: The use of liable to to mean probable or likely was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable.
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Adj. | 1. | liable - at risk of or subject to experiencing something usually unpleasant; "he is apt to lose"; "she is liable to forget" likely - has a good chance of being the case or of coming about; "these services are likely to be available to us all before long"; "she is likely to forget"; "a likely place for a restaurant"; "the broken limb is likely to fall"; "rain is likely"; "a likely topic for investigation"; "likely candidates for the job" |
| 2. | liable - subject to legal action; "liable to criminal charges" nonexempt - (of persons) not exempt from an obligation or liability | |
| 3. |  liable - (often followed by `to') likely to be affected with; "liable to diabetes"susceptible - (often followed by `of' or `to') yielding readily to or capable of; "susceptible to colds"; "susceptible of proof" | |
| 4. | liable - held legally responsible; "men between the ages of 18 and 35 were liable for military service" responsible - worthy of or requiring responsibility or trust; or held accountable; "a responsible adult"; "responsible journalism"; "a responsible position"; "the captain is responsible for the ship's safety"; "the cabinet is responsible to the parliament" |
liable
adjective 3. responsible, accountable, amenable, answerable, bound, obligated, chargeable
USAGE In the past, it was considered incorrect to use liable to mean `probable' or `likely', as in it's liable to happen soon. However, this usage is now generally considered acceptable.
Translations
liable [ˈlaɪəbl] adj (= subject): liable to → sujeto a (= responsible): liable for → responsable de (= likely): liable to do → propenso a hacer;
liable [ˈlaɪəbl] adj (= subject);
liable (for) → responsable (de) (= likely);
liable to do → susceptible de faire;
liable [ˈlaɪəbl] adj to be liable to (= subject to) → unterliegen +dat (= prone to); anfällig sein für;
liable [ˈlaɪəbl] adj (= subject): liable to → soggetto/a a; passibile di (= responsible): liable (for) → responsabile (di) (= likely): liable to do → propenso/a a fare;
adj liable [ˈlaiəbl]
1 (with to) tending to have, get, suffer from etc This road is liable to flooding; He is liable to pneumonia. vatbaar مُعَرَّض لِ، ميّال إلى предразположен vystavený; trpící udsat for; tilbøjelig til; modtagelig for neigend επιρρεπής propenso kalduv در معرض چیزی بودن altis susceptible de, sujet à עָלוּל, צָפוּי दायी podložan hajlamos rawan líklegur, hætt við soggetto a ～しがちな ...하기 쉬운 linkęs į ką pakļauts; disponēts mudah kena vatbaar utsatt for, tilbøyelig til narażony, podatny sujeito a expus la; susceptibil de подверженный vystavený; trpiaci nagnjen (k čemu) podložan benägen, disponerad för ที่มีแนวโน้ม eğimli 易遭受...的 схильний مجبور، زد میں phải chịu cái gì 易遭受...的
2 possibly or probably about (to do something or to happen) Watch the milk – it's liable to boil over. kan voorkom مُحْتَمَل أن подлежащ spějící k, hrozící, chystající se kan komme til; lige ved leicht etwas tun ενδεχόμενος que puede... tõenäoline محتمل luultava qui risque de נוֹטֶה לְ- उत्तरदायित्व prokipjeti hajlamos mungkin hætt við possibile, probabile ～しそうな ...할 것 같은 galintis ką padaryti iespējams mungkin ertoe neigend som kan komme til å, like ved, troende til mający widoki na, podatny propenso a care poate să возможный chystajúci sa (čo) (biti) na tem, da... verovatan som riskerar att ... ที่มีแนวโน้ม muhtemel, olası 有可能的 ймовірний, можливий ممکن có thể làm cái gì 有可能的
3 legally responsible (for) The airline is liable to you for any damage to your luggage. verantwoordelik مَسْؤول عن отговорен odpovědný za ansvarlig verantwortlich, haftbar υπόλογος (νομικά) responsable legaalselt vastutav متعهد responsable de qqch אַחֲרַאי संभाव्य zakonski odgovoran felelős (vmiért) bertanggung jawab responsabile 責任がある atsakingas (juridiski) atbildīgs bertanggungjawab verantwoordelijk, aansprakelijk (voor) ansvarlig, erstatningspliktig odpowiedzialny ответственный (за) zodpovedný (za) odgovoren odgovoran ansvarig ซึ่งรับผิดชอบตามกฎหมาย sorumlu, yükümlü 有責任的，有義務的 відповідальний قانونی طور پر پابند chịu trách nhiệm về 有责任的，有义务的
4 likely to get (a fine, a punishment) Do not litter! Offenders are liable to fines of up to $100. aanspreeklik خاضِع لِ، مُعَرَّض لِ подлежащ podléhající čemu strafansvarlig Haftbar υπόχρεος expuesto, sujeto määratakse (trahv, karistus) مشمول être passible de עָלוּל क़ानूनन ज़िम्मेदार, उत्तरदायी, ज़िम्मेदार kažnjiv büntethető dapat dihukum, dsb. passibile, punibile ～を免れない baustinas pakļauts (sodam) boleh onderworpen (aan) (stå) for tur a fi pe punctul de a obţine могущий подвергнуться vystavený (čomu), podliehajúci (čomu) predisponiran biti podložan skyldig att ..., som kan [] ซึ่งรับผิดชอบตามกฎหมาย (ceza) ...-abilir, (para cezası) ile cezalandırılabilir 易受罰或經歷一些不好的事情或風險 такий, що підлягає ٹیکس یا جرمانے کی ادائگی کا ذمہ دار có thể bị phạt hay trừng phạt 易受罚或经历一些不好的事情或风险
n liaˈbility
verantwoordelikheid تَعَرُّض لِ، إحْتِمال، مَسؤوليَّه отговорност závaznost ansvar; erstatningsansvar die Neigung ευθύνη, νομική υποχρέωση, ενδεχόμενο πρόβλημα responsabilidad kalduvus, varalised kohustused سزاواری؛ مسئولیت alttius, vastuu responsabilité אַחֲרָיוּת देयता, भार उत्तरदायित्व odgovornost, obveza felelősség, kötelezettség; hajlam(osság) tanggung jawab ábyrgð; skaðabótaskylda responsabilità 責任 ...하기 쉬움 pareiga, atsakomybė, įsipareigojimas, skola tendence; nosliece; atbildība tanggungjawab verplichting, aan het blok been ansvar; tilbøyelighet; belastning odpowiedzialność, zobowiązanie possibilidade răspundere, responsabilitate подверженность; обязательство záväznosť odgovornost obaveza ansvar, benägenhet หนี้สิน sorumluluk, yükümlülük 傾向 відповідальність; схильність ذمہ داری sự chịu trách nhiệm 倾向
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