fragile

[fraj-uh l; British fraj-ahyl] /ˈfrædʒ əl; British ˈfrædʒ aɪl/
adjective
1.
easily broken, shattered, or damaged; delicate; brittle; frail:
a fragile ceramic container; a very fragile alliance.
2.
vulnerably delicate, as in appearance:
She has a fragile beauty.
3.
lacking in substance or force; flimsy:
a fragile excuse.
Origin
1505-15; < Latin fragilis, equivalent to frag- (variant stem of frangere to break) + -ilis -ile
Related forms
fragilely, adverb
fragility
[fruh-jil-i-tee] /frəˈdʒɪl ɪ ti/ (Show IPA), fragileness, noun
nonfragile, adjective
nonfragilely, adverb
nonfragileness, noun
nonfragility, noun
overfragile, adjective
unfragile, adjective
Can be confused
brittle, fragile, frail (see synonym study at frail)
Synonyms
1. See frail1 .
Examples from the web for fragility
  • He was only in his forty-seventh year, but he dwelt darkly on the fragility of human existence.
  • Parts of the site will molder and must be allowed to, if only to show the fragility of life.
  • Also, its fragility creates quirks and imperfections, which help make every image unique.
  • Its fragility, however, made it especially prone to fracture.
  • So technical people, who can't help knowing about the fragility of systems, have had to find some way to live with what they know.
  • Against the backdrop of these dramatic elements, the authors juxtapose the planet's fragility.
  • He captured pictures fostering appreciation of both the beauty and fragility of the seas.
  • The exact timing of measures should be sensitive to developments in the economy, particularly the fragility of the recovery.
  • The economic crisis has revealed the fragility of its financial system.
  • It is the apparent fragility of the domestic economy that is the biggest headache now.
British Dictionary definitions for fragility

fragile

/ˈfrædʒaɪl/
adjective
1.
able to be broken easily
2.
in a weakened physical state
3.
delicate; light: a fragile touch
4.
slight; tenuous: a fragile link with the past
Derived Forms
fragilely, adverb
fragility (frəˈdʒɪlɪtɪ), fragileness, noun
Word Origin
C17: from Latin fragilis, from frangere to break
Word Origin and History for fragility
n.

late 14c., "moral weakness," from Old French fragilité "debility, frailty" (12c.), from Latin fragilitatem (nominative fragilitas) "brittleness," from fragilis "brittle, easily broken," from root of frangere "to break" (see fraction). Meaning "quality of being easily broken" first recorded in English late 15c.

fragile

adj.

1510s, "liable to sin, morally weak;" c.1600, "liable to break;" a back-formation from fragility, or else from Middle French fragile (14c.), from Latin fragilis (see fragility). Transferred sense of "frail" (of persons) is from 1858.

fragility in Medicine

fragility fra·gil·i·ty (frə-jĭl'ĭ-tē)
n.
The quality or state of being easily broken or destroyed.