Meaning & use
hypersensitive
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Reacting too strongly or too easily to things, either emotionally or in your body.
Grammar: Often followed by to: hypersensitive to criticism.
Patterns
- hypersensitive to something
He is hypersensitive to criticism, so his manager chooses words carefully.
Her skin is hypersensitive to sunlight.
The alarm is hypersensitive and sounds at the slightest touch.
adjectivecomparabletechnical
Able to detect very small changes or signals, used of instruments and senses.
Grammar: Technical sense for devices and tests.
Patterns
- hypersensitive to something
The microphone is hypersensitive to background noise.
Dogs are hypersensitive to high sounds.
A hypersensitive test might flag harmless changes.
Word forms
| comparative | more hypersensitive |
|---|---|
| superlative | most hypersensitive |
Common combinations
- hypersensitive to light
- Migraine sufferers can be hypersensitive to light.
- hypersensitive to criticism
- She is hypersensitive to criticism.
- hypersensitive skin
- He has hypersensitive skin and avoids strong soaps.
- hypersensitive reaction
- The medicine caused a hypersensitive reaction.
- become hypersensitive
- After the injury, the arm became hypersensitive.
Synonyms and how they differ
- oversensitive
- Oversensitive is more everyday and mostly about feelings.
- thin-skinned
- Thin-skinned is informal and describes someone who is easily offended.
- touchy
- Touchy is informal and suggests quick anger rather than deep hurt.
- allergic
- Allergic refers to a specific bodily reaction caused by the immune system.
Opposites
Word family
- hypersensitivity noun
- the condition of reacting too strongly
- sensitive adjective
- quick to respond to something
- sensitivity noun
- the quality of being sensitive
- desensitize verb
- to make less sensitive
Commonly confused: hypersensitive or hyperactive? hypersensitive or insensitive?
hypersensitive vs hyperactive
Hyperactive means being too active, while hypersensitive means reacting too strongly.
hypersensitive vs insensitive
Insensitive means not caring about others' feelings, the opposite of sensitive.
Practice
My dog is hypersensitive ____ loud noises.
Choose one answer.
Hypersensitive takes the preposition to: hypersensitive to loud noises. The other prepositions are not used.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hypersensitive”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.