sensitivity
Pluralsensitivities
- 1The quality or state of being sensitive: readily affected by, or responsive to, feelings, impressions, and subtle differences.
Like a tuned ear that catches the faintest note in a song.
The negotiator handled the dispute with a sensitivity that calmed both sides.
His sensitivity to other people's moods made him a thoughtful host.
Similartact, delicacy, empathy, awareness, perceptiveness
Oppositeinsensitivity, callousness, tactlessness
Note
Subjects can have it as well as people. A topic shows sensitivity when it is delicate to handle, as with the sensitivity of language politics. In the plural, sensitivities are the particular concerns that make a matter touchy: officials cite sensitivities about a force's capabilities to explain what they cannot disclose. Here the word describes the subject, not anyone's feelings, and it explains a silence.
- 2The ability of an organism or organ to respond to outside stimuli such as light, heat, sound, or touch.
Like a thermostat that reacts the moment the room changes temperature.
The retina's sensitivity to dim light allows vision in near darkness.
Researchers measured the insect's sensitivity to small changes in temperature.
Similarresponsiveness, reactivity, susceptibility
Oppositeinsensitivity, unresponsiveness
Note
Biology uses this word for how readily a living system answers a stimulus. The stimulus often goes in front as a noun, as in light sensitivity in the eye or insulin sensitivity in the body's cells, or follows with to, as in sensitivity to dim light. Here the organism does the responding. In the medical "susceptibility" meaning, a pathogen is on the receiving end of a treatment.
- 3The degree to which a disease-causing organism or tissue can be affected or destroyed by a particular medical treatment; susceptibility.
Lab results showed the strain's sensitivity to penicillin had declined.
Oncologists assess each tumor's sensitivity to chemotherapy before treatment.
Similarsusceptibility, vulnerability
Oppositeresistance, immunity
Note
A clinical laboratory term used chiefly of pathogens. A strain's sensitivity to a drug is usually determined in vitro to guide therapy, and it is often reported as the concentration at which the drug inhibits growth. Susceptibility is the interchangeable synonym, and the two appear side by side in medical writing. A report that sensitivity has declined means the treatment is losing its hold on the organism.
- 4The degree to which an instrument responds to a change in an input signal.
Engineers increased the sensor's sensitivity to detect faint vibrations.
The receiver's sensitivity determines the weakest signal it can pick up.
Similarresponsiveness
Note
In instrumentation the word names a ratio: how much an instrument's output changes for a given change in the measured input. The more sensitive a sensor or receiver, the finer the variations it can register. That is why scientists counting microplastics in seawater weigh the sensitivity of their instruments before comparing one survey's figures with another's.
- 5In a binary classification test, the probability that a true positive is correctly identified.
A diagnostic test's sensitivity tells you how many true cases it catches.
Researchers reported the assay's sensitivity at ninety-five percent.
Similarrecall
Note
Statisticians also call it the true positive rate. It is calculated as true positives divided by the sum of true positives and false negatives. Its regular partner is specificity, and the two are quoted together. A test can reach perfect sensitivity simply by flagging everyone, so a high figure shows that few real cases are missed. It says nothing on its own about false alarms.
- 6The degree to which photographic film responds to light of a particular wavelength.
The film's sensitivity to red light made it ideal for sunset photography.
Photographers chose a stock with greater sensitivity for the dim interior.
Similarspeed
Note
In photography, sensitivity is always tied to color. A film's response is measured for light of a given wavelength, so the word usually names a part of the spectrum as well as a degree, as in sensitivity to red light. The emulsion's overall responsiveness governs exposure and is expressed through speed ratings such as ISO.
Practice
Can you tell the meanings of sensitivity apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.
Origin
Formed from the adjective "sensitive" combined with the suffix "-ity."