vulnerable
Open to harm
If someone is vulnerable it means they are at risk of some injury, damage, or loss: Homeless people are particularly vulnerable in these frigid temperatures.
Vulnerable usually applies to living things, especially people, but inanimate objects can also be called vulnerable: The contractors assured us that the system was not vulnerable to hackers, but they were wrong.
In the card game of bridge, vulnerable means subject to certain penalties.
Unable to act independently
- unprotectedWithout safeguard or shield
- powerlessLacking strength or authority
- exposedOut in open
- unarmedHaving no weapons
undefended · weak · at-risk · unguarded · unshielded · prey · victim · assailable
Weak and breakable
- fragileEasily broken or damaged
- delicateEasily broken or harmed
- weakLacking power or force
- feebleWeak and ineffective
infirm · sickly · ailing · elderly · injured · wounded · disabled · compromised
Subject to potential harm
- endangeredAt risk of extinction
- susceptibleEasily influenced or harmed
- precariousDangerously insecure
- threatenedExpressed intent to harm
hazardous · perilous · unsafe · unstable · insecure · liability · exposure · exploitable
Not closed
- trustingInclined to believe others
- approachableEasy to engage with
- acceptingWilling to receive
- honestFree from deception
candid · transparent · sincere · forthcoming · unreserved · genuine · authentic · willing
Made visible or known
- bareLacking any covering
- unprotectedWithout safeguard or shield
- revealedMade visible or known
- visibleAble to be seen
unmasked · disclosed · transparent · unconcealed · naked · stripped · unshielded · unhidden
helpless
Unable to act independently
- unprotectedWithout safeguard or shield
- powerlessLacking strength or authority
- exposedOut in open
unarmed · undefended · weak · at-risk · unguarded · unshielded · prey · victim · assailable · imperiled
frail
Weak and breakable
feeble · infirm · sickly · ailing · elderly · injured · wounded · disabled · compromised · debilitated
at-risk
Subject to potential harm
- endangeredAt risk of extinction
- susceptibleEasily influenced or harmed
- precariousDangerously insecure
threatened · hazardous · perilous · unsafe · unstable · insecure · liability · exposure · exploitable · weakness
open
Not closed
- trustingInclined to believe others
- approachableEasy to engage with
- acceptingWilling to receive
honest · candid · transparent · sincere · forthcoming · unreserved · genuine · authentic · willing · receptive
uncovered
Made visible or known
- bareLacking any covering
- unprotectedWithout safeguard or shield
- revealedMade visible or known
visible · unmasked · disclosed · transparent · unconcealed · naked · stripped · unshielded · unhidden
raw
In original state
- open-heartedGenuine and warmly receptive
- tenderSoft or sore
- woundedHaving sustained harm
hurt · guarded · intimacy · trust · authenticity · courage · shame · heartache · anguish · grief
- weakweak, feeble, frail, fragile, faint
- unreadyunprepared, ill-prepared, ill-equipped, unready, not ready
- vulnerabilitydefenselessness, defenseless, helplessness, helpless, powerlessness
- moodshappy, sad, angry, anxious, excited
- ecologyhabitat, ecosystem, balance, niche, food webs
- childlike traitsplayful, curious, innocent, imaginative, young
vulnerableinvulnerable
Immune to all harm
immune · safe · protected · secure · unsusceptible
vulnerableinvincible
Incapable of being defeated
impregnable · unassailable · indomitable · unconquerable · defensible
vulnerableguarded
Wary and restrained
closed-off · thick-skinned · hardened · insensitive · emotionally unavailable
- vulnerable households
- emotional vulnerabilityWillingness to expose feelings
- vulnerable populationsGroups disproportionately susceptible to harm
- vulnerable pointExposed weakness in defense
- vulnerable adultsThose susceptible to harm or exploitation
- vulnerable speciesConservation category below endangered
invulnerable, vulnerability, invulnerability, vulnerably, vulnerabilities, vulnerableness, vulnerable species, vulnerable populations