frail C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /freɪl/ UK /freɪl/ See IPA manual Minimal pairs Sounds like flail /l/ vs /ɹ/ Meanings 1 adj weak and delicate; easily damaged or broken The frail old man leaned heavily on his cane. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adj · weak and delicate; easily... weakdelicatefragilefeebleinfirmflimsybrittleslight ↔ Opposites strongrobuststurdysoundvigorous Word family Derived forms frailtyfrailnessfrailly Related forms fragilefracturefrangible Common collocations frail humanity Adjective + noun Etymology AI details From Middle English frele, from Old French fraile, frele, from Latin fragilis ('easily broken'), from frangere ('to break'); a doublet of fragile. fragilis Latin frangere Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # frail **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /freɪl/ **IPA (UK):** /freɪl/ ## Meanings 1. weak and delicate; easily damaged or broken ## Examples - The frail old man leaned heavily on his cane. ## Synonyms - weak - delicate - fragile - feeble - infirm - flimsy - brittle - slight ## Antonyms - strong - robust - sturdy - sound - vigorous ## Derived Forms - frailty - frailness - frailly ## Related Forms - fragile - fracture - frangible ## Roots and Affixes - Root: fragilis - Root: frangere ## Etymology From Middle English frele, from Old French fraile, frele, from Latin fragilis ('easily broken'), from frangere ('to break'); a doublet of fragile. ## AI Etymology Frail comes from Middle English frele, from Old French fraile, frele, from Latin fragilis ('easily broken'), from frangere ('to break'); a doublet of fragile. The historical trail runs through Latin fragilis and Latin frangere. In modern use it means weak and delicate; easily damaged or broken. Derived formations include frailty, frailness, frailly; related forms include fragile, fracture, frangible. ## Topics - Describing Qualities markdown