English Reference
Noun

frailty

n. uncountable
C1 Advanced US /ˈfɹeɪɫti/ UK /fɹˈeɪlti/ frailty UK spelling frailties

n.the state of being physically weak or easily broken. It can also describe a lack of strength in a person's character or a system.

n.the state of being physically weak or easily broken; a lack of strength or stability in a person, system, or structure.


SIMPLE

The old man's frailty made it hard for him to walk.

CONTEXTUAL

The architect warned that the building's structural frailty could lead to a collapse during a storm.

COMPLEX

The protagonist's journey is defined by a struggle against his own physical frailty, which serves as a metaphor for the inevitable decline of human ambition.

At 37, she moved with the frailty and deliberativeness of someone twice her age, and she eventually acquired a wheelchair to reduce the burden on her stamina.

Smithsonian Magazine· 31 Aug 2026

The midfielder was brought to Rangers to add steel, not to contribute to the mental frailties that dogged them on the run-in last season.

BBC News· 20 Aug 2026

From Middle English frelete, frailte, from Old French fraileté, from Latin fragilitās. By surface analysis, frail + -ty. Doublet of fragility.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Origin Latin fragilitās
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Occasional
Updated