immunity
noun/ɪˈmjuːnəti/
Etymology From Middle English immunite, from Old French immunité, from Latin immūnitās, in the legal sense; for the medical use see immunization. Equivalent to immune + -ity.
› The state of being insusceptible to…
1
Medicine, Sciences Protective resistance against disease.
- Some people have better immunity to diseases than others.
2
Law An exemption from specified duties, such as payments or services.
- Feudal privileges often included tax and other immunities.
3
Law An exemption from prosecution.
- The prosecutor offered the lieutenant immunity for all the crimes he would testify having known to be planned by the elusive drug baron.
4
Lifestyle, Religion An exemption from penance.
- Nevertheless, his reason rebelled, and his sense of religion by no means allowed the justice of refusing the amiable, handsome, and wealthy Englishman, whom his sweet child preferred, and who was perfectly willing that the signora should enjoy all the liberty required by her conscience and her church, together with such sums as should, from time to time, purchase the prayers of the faithful, and all other immunities, so far as his fortune furnished the means.1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XXIX, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 81:
5
In games and competitions An exemption given to a player from losing or being withdrawn from play.
- After winning the last round the player was granted immunity which allowed him to stay in the game even after receiving the fewest points.
6
A resistance to a specific thing.
- Superbugs are bacteria that develop an immunity to antibiotics.
- Synonyms
- exemption, free pass, get out of jail free card
- Antonyms
- susceptibility
- Derived terms
36 terms
absolute immunity, adaptive immunity, alloimmunity, autoimmunity, cell-mediated immunity, chemoimmunity, community immunity, crown immunity, cytoimmunity, derivative use immunity, dysimmunity, herd immunity, heteroimmunity, homoimmunity, humoral immunity, hybrid immunity, hyperimmunity, hypoimmunity, immunifacient, immunity gap, immunize, immuno-, immunology, innate immunity, isoimmunity, neuroimmunity, nonimmunity, qualified immunity, radioimmunity, seroimmunity, social immunity, sovereign immunity, superimmunity, tingle immunity, transactional immunity, use immunity- Hyponyms
- diplomatic immunity