Amenable To: Standard Pattern
Amenable To: Standard Pattern records the directly documented Cambridge construction and keeps guidance bounded to the evidenced complement pattern rather than inventing a broader prohibition.
Cambridge documents “amenable to” for being willing to accept or be influenced by an idea, suggestion, or proposal.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Context | Use | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| a person is willing to accept an idea | amenable to + idea/suggestion | Use “to” before what the person is willing to consider or accept. |
| a group is open to a proposal or influence | amenable to + proposal/change | The construction can describe openness to being influenced by what follows. |
| you intend another documented sense of “amenable” | check that sense separately | Do not convert this reviewed complement into a universal rule for every sense. |
Quick tests
Decision test
Are you saying that a person or group is willing to accept, consider, or be influenced by the idea, suggestion, or proposal that follows?
If yes: Use “amenable to.”
If no: If you intend a different sense, check that construction separately.
Caveat: This page is bounded to Cambridge’s reviewed willingness/influence sense and does not claim that all other complements or senses are impossible.
Examples
She was amenable to the revised schedule.
“To” introduces the proposal she was willing to accept.
The group seemed amenable to a compromise.
A proposal or idea can follow “to.”
He remained amenable to suggestions from the team.
The complement names what he was willing to consider.
Further guidance
Construction
Cambridge documents “amenable to” when someone or something is willing to accept or can be influenced by a suggestion or proposal.
Style Boundary
This page records the amenable-to complement pattern and does not treat amenable as interchangeable with every adjective meaning agreeable or suitable.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- amenable — Cambridge Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Cambridge University Press · Cambridge dictionary evidence for amenable to an idea, proposal, suggestion, or influence.