able to be broken easily in a weakened physical state delicate; light: a fragile touch slight; tenuous
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
frag•ile /ˈfrædʒəl/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- easily broken or damaged:a fragile vase.
- delicate in appearance:fragile beauty.
- lacking in substance or force; flimsy:a fragile excuse.
frag•ile
(fraj′əl; Brit. fraj′īl),USA pronunciation adj.
frag′ile•ly, adv.
fra•gil•i•ty
(frə jil′i tē),USA pronunciation frag′ile•ness, n.
- easily broken, shattered, or damaged;
delicate;
brittle;
frail:a fragile ceramic container; a very fragile alliance. - vulnerably delicate, as in appearance:She has a fragile beauty.
- lacking in substance or force;
flimsy:a fragile excuse.
- Latin fragilis, equivalent. to frag- (variant stem of frangere to break) + -ilis -ile
- 1505–15
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged See frail 1.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'fragile' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
-ile
- Belleek
- bell jar
- break
- breakable
- brittle
- brittle star
- corn
- corrugated paper
- delicacy
- delicate
- doublet
- ecohazard
- eggshell
- flimsy
- fragile X syndrome
- frail
- frangible
- friable
- gall midge
- glass lizard
- gnat
- herring
- hothouse
- ile-
- lepidopteran
- lily
- midge
- moleskin
- osteogenesis imperfecta
- quilting
- saggar
- saxifrage
- scaldfish
- slender
- slight
- smilax
- soft-shell
- tender
- tough
- twiggy
- unglued
- weak