labile
adjective
la·bile
ˈlā-ˌbī(-ə)l 
-bəl
-bəl
1
: readily or continually undergoing chemicalphysicalor biological change or breakdown : unstable
a labile mineral
2
: readily open to change
… has so labile a face that some of her scenes … rock with emotion.—
Manny Farber
Manny Farber
Did you know?
Labile was borrowed into English from French and can be traced back (by way of Middle French labilemeaning "prone to err") to the Latin verb labimeaning "to slip or fall." Indeedthe first sense of labile in English was "prone to sliperror lapse," but that use is now obsolete. Other labi descendants in English include collapseelapseand prolapseas well as lapse itself.
Examples of labile in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
While traditional facelifts merely tighten the skin in a superficial mannerdeep-plane procedures can now reorganize the underlying structure of the facerepositioning musclesfat padsand ligaments in a labile system of roving features.
—Patrick R. CrowleyArtforum1 Mar. 2026
The astonishing Laanstra-Corn does not play Hedvig purely as an innocent; there’s something as dangerous and emotionally labile in her shocked face as there is in Gregers’s explosive outbursts.
—Helen ShawNew Yorker18 Sep. 2025
The mob is aroused and labile; the lumpy cops have no controlover the situation or over themselves.
—James ParkerThe Atlantic12 Oct. 2024
Then the therapist could spend several minutes establishing a safe rapport with the patient while waiting for the memory to enter a labile state during the reconsolidation-updating window.
—Bj CaseyScientific American14 May 2024
There was something kineticsomething labile in his air.
—Kevin BarryThe New Yorker8 Apr. 2024
Amid this high level of acting skillLindsey stood out with her wonderfully convincing gestures and facial expressionsfilling out the character of the more labile younger sister with captivating verisimilitude.
—Jeremy YudkinBostonGlobe.com17 July 2023
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Patrick R. CrowleyArtforum1 Mar. 2026
The astonishing Laanstra-Corn does not play Hedvig purely as an innocent; there’s something as dangerous and emotionally labile in her shocked face as there is in Gregers’s explosive outbursts.
—Helen ShawNew Yorker18 Sep. 2025
The mob is aroused and labile; the lumpy cops have no controlover the situation or over themselves.
—James ParkerThe Atlantic12 Oct. 2024
Then the therapist could spend several minutes establishing a safe rapport with the patient while waiting for the memory to enter a labile state during the reconsolidation-updating window.
—Bj CaseyScientific American14 May 2024
There was something kineticsomething labile in his air.
—Kevin BarryThe New Yorker8 Apr. 2024
Amid this high level of acting skillLindsey stood out with her wonderfully convincing gestures and facial expressionsfilling out the character of the more labile younger sister with captivating verisimilitude.
—Jeremy YudkinBostonGlobe.com17 July 2023
Cite this Entry
“Labile.” Merriam-Webster.com DictionaryMerriam-Websterhttps://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/labile. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
: readily or frequently changing: as
a
: readily or continually undergoing chemicalphysicalor biological change or breakdown
a labile antigen
b
: characterized by wide fluctuations (as in blood pressure or glucose tolerance)
labile hypertension
labile diabetes
c
: emotionally unstable
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