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“impunity”
immunity, impunity
immunity (i MYOO ni tee) (noun)
1. A state of being able to resist disease by counteracting its effects: Latonya had already developed immunity to measles and was able to help nurse her younger brother when he came down with them, too.
2. A condition whereby a person is protected or exempt from certain normal civil rules; implies freedom from or protection against something disagreeable or menacing: Walter's status as an ambassador gave him immunity from being questioned by the police.
2. A condition whereby a person is protected or exempt from certain normal civil rules; implies freedom from or protection against something disagreeable or menacing: Walter's status as an ambassador gave him immunity from being questioned by the police.
impunity (im PYOO ni tee) (noun)
A situation where a person is safe from or free from punishment, penalty, or harm: Ryan acted with impunity, knowing that he would not be prosecuted by the police.
The local jewel thief often acted with the knowledge that he had impunity because the police frequently granted him immunity in exchange for secret information about other criminals.
This entry is located in the following unit:
Confusing Words Clarified: Group I; Homonyms, Homophones, Homographs, Synonyms, Polysemes, etc. +
(page 1)
1. An exemption from punishment, harm, or recrimination as a result of one's actions or words: In some countries, impunity seems to give some people the license to commit grave crimes.
2. Freedom from any risk of retribution for doing something wrong or bad: Impunity applies to someone who is given the right to say or do something that others would not have privilege to do.
3. Etymology: from the 1530's which came from Latin impunitatem, impunitas, "freedom from punishment, omission of punishment"; from impunis, "unpunished, without punishment"; from in-, "not" + poena, "punishment".
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2. Freedom from any risk of retribution for doing something wrong or bad: Impunity applies to someone who is given the right to say or do something that others would not have privilege to do.
3. Etymology: from the 1530's which came from Latin impunitatem, impunitas, "freedom from punishment, omission of punishment"; from impunis, "unpunished, without punishment"; from in-, "not" + poena, "punishment".
The root word punity, has the same origin as "punished". When the negative im-, "not" is added, then impunity has the meaning of "not being punished" for what someone says or does.
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poen-, peno-, poino-, poin-, puni-, pain-, penal-, pent-
(page 1)