hospitable
/hɒˈspɪtəbl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈhɑːspɪtəbl/ (ame, ipa) · /hä-ˈspi-tə-bəl ˈhä-(ˌ)spi-/ (ame, mw)
hospitable — adjective
- hospitablepositive
- more hospitablecomparative
- most hospitablesuperlative
1. treating people who visit your home, country, or business with warmth, kindness,
treating people who visit your home, country, or business with warmth, kindness, and generosity
The Watanabe family gave their guests a hospitable welcome with tea and sweets.
collocation: hospitable welcome
Amara was known throughout the village as the most hospitable host in the region.
collocation: hospitable host
Vikram found the people of the small coastal town incredibly hospitable during his stay.
A hospitable gesture like offering a drink can make any visitor feel at ease.
The innkeeper was so genuinely hospitable that guests returned year after year.
- inhospitable
direct opposite: not welcoming or generous to guests
- unwelcoming
colder and less inviting, but not necessarily rude
用法筆記
Can describe people, places, or actions — a hospitable family, a hospitable welcome, a hospitable gesture. The subject is typically a person or group, but a country or region can also be described as hospitable when its people collectively treat visitors well.
常見錯誤
2. having a climate, environment, or surroundings where plants, animals, or people
having a climate, environment, or surroundings where plants, animals, or people can live and grow well
The warm coastal waters are hospitable to over three hundred species of fish.
pattern: hospitable to + noun phrase
This high-altitude region is not naturally hospitable to fruit trees, but the farmers found a way.
Scientists were surprised to find the cave system hospitable to tiny blind shrimp.
The island's gentle climate has always been hospitable to year-round farming.
Few plants survive in soil that is barely hospitable to the hardiest roots.
- favourable
more general and can describe any helpful condition, not only for living things
- conducive
formal; stresses that conditions lead to a result, e.g. 'conducive to learning'
- nurturing
emphasises active support for growth, often used for parenting or care
- inhospitable
direct opposite: a place where living things struggle to survive
- harsh
emphasises severity and discomfort, e.g. a harsh climate
- barren
specifically describes land where little or nothing can grow
文法句型
hospitable to + noun phrase
用法筆記
Subject is usually a place, climate, or region, not a person. Often followed by 'to' plus what can grow or survive there. This sense is distinct from sense 1: a person cannot be 'hospitable to plants' in this sense (that would mean something different — being welcoming to plants as if they were guests).
常見錯誤
3. willing to give fair attention to ideas, changes, or viewpoints that are new or
willing to give fair attention to ideas, changes, or viewpoints that are new or unfamiliar
Professor Okafor was known to be hospitable to theories that challenged the mainstream view.
pattern: hospitable to + abstract noun
The new mayor seemed far more hospitable to change than her predecessor.
A good editor must remain hospitable to unexpected story angles from young writers.
Nadia found the department less hospitable to her research methods than she had hoped.
Communities that are hospitable to diverse viewpoints tend to produce more creative solutions.
- receptive
neutral tone; stresses willingness to receive, without implying warmth
- open-minded
more colloquial; emphasises lack of prejudice rather than active engagement
- amenable
formal; often implies being easily persuaded or cooperative
- hostile
actively opposed or resistant to ideas, much stronger than merely unreceptive
- closed-minded
unwilling to consider alternative viewpoints at all
文法句型
hospitable to + abstract noun
用法筆記
Often used with 'to' plus an abstract noun (ideas, change, reform, innovation). Common in academic, intellectual, or political contexts. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense always takes an abstract object, never a physical place or living thing.