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6 dictionary results for: fragility
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
frag·ile
[fraj-uh
l; Brit. fraj-ahyl] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[fraj-uh
l; Brit. fraj-ahyl] Pronunciation Key –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. |
—Related forms
frag·ile·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| frag·ile
(frāj'əl, -īl') Pronunciation Key
adj.
[French, from Old French, from Latin fragilis, from frangere, frag-, to break; see bhreg- in Indo-European roots.] frag'ile·ly adv., fra·gil'i·ty (frə-jĭl'ĭ-tē), frag'ile·ness n. Synonyms: These adjectives mean easily broken or damaged. Fragile applies to objects that are not made of strong or sturdy material and that require great care when handled: fragile porcelain plates. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
fragility
fragility
1398, "moral weakness," from O.Fr. fragilité, from L. fragilitatem (nom. fragilitas) "brittleness," from fragilis "brittle, easily broken," from root of frangere "to break" (see fraction). Meaning "easily broken" first recorded in Eng. 1474. Fragile is 1513 as "liable to sin;" 1607 as "liable to break."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| fragility | |
noun | |
| 1. | quality of being easily damaged or destroyed |
| 2. | lack of physical strength |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
fragility fra·gil·i·ty (frə-jĭl'ĭ-tē)
n.
The quality or state of being easily broken or destroyed.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Fragility
Fra*gil"i*ty\, n. [L. fragilitas: cf. F. fragilit['e]. Cf. Frailty.]1. The condition or quality of being fragile; brittleness; frangibility. --Bacon. 2. Weakness; feebleness. An appearance of delicacy, and even of fragility, is almost essential to it [beauty]. --Burke. 3. Liability to error and sin; frailty. [Obs.] The fragility and youthful folly of Qu. Fabius. --Holland.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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