sensitive

Pluralsensitives

1. 1
   adjective

   Easily hurt or upset by what other people say or do.

   Like skin after a sunburn: even a light touch can hurt.

   Don't tease him about his height, because he's sensitive about it.

   She's sensitive and cries when people criticize her drawings.

   Similartouchy, thin-skinned, self-conscious, defensive, prickly

   Oppositethick-skinned, insensitive

   Note
2. 2
   adjective

   Meant to be kept secret and not shared with everyone.

   The letter had sensitive information in it, so she locked it away.

   Never send sensitive details like your bank password in an email.

   Similarconfidential, classified, secret, private, restricted

   Oppositepublic, unclassified

   Note
3. 3
   adjective

   Careful about other people's feelings and trying not to hurt them.

   Be sensitive when you talk to her, because she just lost her dog.

   A sensitive teacher notices when a student feels left out.

   Similartactful, considerate, thoughtful, sympathetic, understanding

   Oppositeinsensitive, tactless, thoughtless, callous

4. 4
   adjective

   Able to notice or measure very small changes.

   Like ears that can hear the quietest whisper in a noisy room.

   This scale is so sensitive it can weigh a single grain of rice.

   Our smoke alarm is so sensitive that it goes off when we make toast.

   Similarprecise, accurate, responsive, acute

   Oppositeinsensitive, crude, imprecise

   Note
5. 5
   adjective

   Likely to upset or offend people, so it needs to be talked about with care.

   Money is a sensitive subject in our family, so we don't bring it up.

   The teacher handled the sensitive topic of bullying with great care.

   Similardelicate, controversial, touchy, thorny, difficult

   Oppositeuncontroversial, innocuous

   Note
6. 6
   adjective

   Very important and tricky, needing great care so nothing goes wrong.

   Like carrying a very full cup of hot tea: one small bump spills it.

   The peace talks were at a sensitive point, and one wrong word could end them.

   Moving the old painting was a sensitive job that took all day.

   Similardelicate, tricky, critical, ticklish, difficult

   Oppositestraightforward, routine

7. 7
   adjective

   Quick to react to things like light, sound, touch, or heat.

   Her eyes are sensitive to bright light, so she wears sunglasses outside.

   My teeth are sensitive, and cold drinks make them ache.

   Similarresponsive, reactive, susceptible

   Oppositeinsensitive, unresponsive, resistant

   Note
8. 8
   adjective

   Able to feel things through the senses, like touch or sight.

   A worm is a sensitive creature that can feel touch even though it has no eyes.

   All sensitive beings can feel pain in some way.

   Similarsentient

   Oppositeinsentient, insensate

   Note
9. 9
   nouncountable

   A person who can sense things, like spirits, that most people cannot.

   The old house felt strange, and the sensitive said a spirit lived in the attic.

   In the story, a sensitive helps the family speak with their lost grandmother.

   Similarpsychic, medium, clairvoyant

   Note

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