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Kane159 Posted 15 years ago
Vocabulary
Liable/responsible
Hi,
what's the difference between these two, please? I take the word "liable" as being responsible for doing something negative, for example commiting a crime or doing harm to a person (injury etc). Am I right?
Can I use them in the following sentence?
Peter is responsible/liable for the damage of the car.
Thank you in advance!
what's the difference between these two, please? I take the word "liable" as being responsible for doing something negative, for example commiting a crime or doing harm to a person (injury etc). Am I right?
Can I use them in the following sentence?
Peter is responsible/liable for the damage of the car.
Thank you in advance!
Top answer
They can both be used, but "responsible" in this case would mean Peter caused the damage. "Liable" would mean Peter is the one who must pay for the damage even if he didn't cause the damage. So, liability usually means legal responsibility (here paying for repairs), which is often negative.
- They can both be used, but "responsible" in this case would mean Peter caused the damage.
- "Liable" would mean Peter is the one who must pay for the damage even if he didn't cause the damage.
- So, liability usually means legal responsibility (here paying for repairs), which is often negative.
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1 Answers
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They can both be used, but "responsible" in this case would mean Peter caused the damage. "Liable" would mean Peter is the one who must pay for the damage even if he didn't cause the damage. So, liability usually means legal responsibility (here paying for repairs), which is often negative.
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