debility

American  

[dih-bil-i-tee] / dɪˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

• debilities
  plural

1. a weakened or enfeebled state; weakness.

   Debility prevented him from getting out of bed.

2. a particular mental or physical disability.

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debility British  

/ dɪˈbɪlɪtɪ /

noun

1. weakness or infirmity

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• debilities
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of debility

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English debylite, from Middle French debilite, from Latin dēbilitās, from dēbil ( is ) “weak” + -itās -ity

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Explanation

Debility is weakness caused by an illness, injury, or aging. Very elderly people often need extra care because of debility. Debility is similar to disability, although the first term tends to describe a slower process of slowing and weakening, either physically or mentally. It comes from the Latin debilitatem, "a weakening," and its roots, the prefix de-, "from or away," and -bilis, "strength." A lack of proper nutrition over a long period can cause debility, and the very act of living to be 120 is sure to result in debility as well.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

debility debilities

If your pain is from nerve compression, a disc issue or joint degeneration, inactivity can cause muscles to tighten, pain to worsen, loss of physical condition and more debility.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 15, 2025

At 40, Baudelaire was a shadow of his former self, crushed by unrepayable debts, suffering the aftereffects of a seemingly minor stroke, and facing the onset of syphilitic debility.

From Washington Post ● May 11, 2022

This season, the writers on “Succession” have been playing up the age-related debility and mental fogginess of their crotchety corporate monarch.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 2, 2021

This is the eschaton through lack of access, but also through human atrophy, debility, the desuetude of critical function.

From New York Times ● Oct. 20, 2020

Considerable debility of the vital powers, as in typhoid fever.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Noah Webster

To really good contemporary artists, however, the debilities inherent to art made in a very small size are merely challenges to be met.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026

Among a population of veterans who have a high incidence of mental and physical debilities, some get discouraged and drop out of the process.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2025

But his diagnosis of America’s debilities is more persuasive than his prescriptions to remedy them.

From New York Times ● Nov. 20, 2018

Such debilities can be found in many people with dementia.

From The New Yorker ● Mar. 23, 2015

E. D.—Its effects are, to moderately warm and strengthen the vessels; and hence, in cold phlegmatic habits, it excites appetite, and proves serviceable in debilities of the nervous system.

From The Botanist's Companion, Volume II by William Salisbury

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