adjective

frail

frayl

adjective

Physically weak or delicate, especially due to age or illness.

"Her grandmother had grown frail after the long winter."

"The frail old bridge swayed with every step."

Easily broken down morally or emotionally; not firm in resolve.

"His frail willpower gave way after just one temptation."

How to Use Frail

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishWeak and delicate — usually describing a person's health, but sometimes their resolve.

Common mistake

Frail is almost always used for people (their body or health); fragile is used more broadly for objects and situations.

Easily confused with

fragile →

Common pairings

frail health frail elderly grow frail

frailer comparative, frailed past tense, frails plural, frails plural, frails plural, frails plural, frails singular, frailest superlative

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Her grandmother had grown _____ after the long winter.

From Old French fraile, from Latin fragilis ("breakable") — a doublet of "fragile."

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