Immune Originally Meant Exempt From Taxes
Immune means protected from something. In Roman law it meant free from public duties, and medicine borrowed it much later.
Immune means protected against something, especially disease. The Roman sense was fiscal: *immunis* meant exempt from public service or tribute, from *munus*, a duty or office. The medical use dates only from the nineteenth century, and *diplomatic immunity* preserves the original legal meaning exactly.
- Protected from disease. *Immune to measles.*
- Exempt. *Immune from prosecution.*
- Unaffected. *Immune to criticism.*
- Immunity — the state of being immune. *Diplomatic immunity.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Adjective | immune | Naturally immune. |
| Noun | immunity | Herd immunity. |
| Verb | immunise | Immunise the herd. |
| Field | immunology | A degree in immunology. |
| Related | municipal | Municipal duties. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Diplomatic immunity is the original sense.Exemption from legal duty.
- Herd immunity protects those who cannot be vaccinated.Epidemiology.
- She is immune to flattery.Figurative.
Words from *munus*, a duty
- Immune — exempt from duty
- Municipal — relating to a town's duties and offices
- Community — those sharing duties
- Remuneration — payment for a service performed
- Common — from a related sense of shared obligation
From Latin *immunis*, exempt from public duty, from *in-*, not, and *munus*, a service or obligation.
Are immune and municipal related?
Yes. Both build on Latin *munus*, meaning a duty or public office.
What is herd immunity?
The protection unvaccinated people gain when enough of a population is immune that the disease cannot spread easily.