frailty

[freyl-tee, frey-uhl-]

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noun, plural frail·ties for 3.

the quality or state of being frail.
moral weakness; liability to yield to temptation.
a fault resulting from moral weakness: frailties of the human flesh.

Origin of frailty

1300–50; Middle English frailte, frelete < Old French frailete < Latin fragilitāt- (stem of fragilitās). See frail¹, -ity

Related formso·ver·frail·ty, noun

Synonyms for frailty

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1. delicacy, weakness, fragility. 2. susceptibility, suggestibility. 3. flaw, defect.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for frailty

defect, failing, imperfection, foible, deficiency, shortcoming, fallibility, infirmity, debility, blemish, feebleness, fault, solecism, delicacy, decrepitude, foil, peccadillo, error, daintiness

Examples from the Web for frailty

Contemporary Examples of frailty

For many seniors, driving represents the difference between isolation and the frailty spiral.
A 100-Year-Old-Driver Crashes into School Kids. Time to Take Grandpa’s Car Keys?
Jamie Reno
August 31, 2012
“This can then lead to inactivity, which can lead to frailty, then to ill health,” she says.
A 100-Year-Old-Driver Crashes into School Kids. Time to Take Grandpa’s Car Keys?
Jamie Reno
August 31, 2012
These Republicans still frighten voters with visions of an old age in poverty and frailty.
Is Paul Ryan Delusional?
Jack W. Germond
April 28, 2011
We know too much now about the hollowness of institutions and the frailty of their leaders.
The Naked Truth
Tina Brown
February 18, 2009

Historical Examples of frailty

And, by the frailty of those they have triumphed over, they judge of all the rest.
Clarissa, Volume 3 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
But Indian nature is human nature, with all its frailty and humiliation.
King Philip
John S. C. (John Stevens Cabot) Abbott
Naomi's frailty appeared to be not only of the body but also of the spirit.
The Scapegoat
Hall Caine
Most of them belonged to the Frailty Theatre, and their usual talk was of the "stars" engaged there.
The Christian
Hall Caine
She wanted to draw a veil over her frailty, but I wouldn't let her.
The Eternal City
Hall Caine

British Dictionary definitions for frailty

frailty

noun plural -ties

physical or moral weakness
(often plural) a fault symptomatic of moral weakness

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for frailty

mid-14c., from Old French fraileté "frailty, weakness," from Latin fragilitatem (nominative fragilitas), from fragilis "fragile" (see fragility). Related: Frailties.