friable
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of friable
First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin friābilis, equivalent to friā(re) “to rub, crumble” + -ābilis -able
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But one piece of the more concerning friable asbestos - which can be easily crushed into a powder - was found at a public park in suburb Surry Hills.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2024
Early Americans drained these swamps to acquire civilization’s most essential resource: tillable land with friable soil.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 26, 2016
Tangier’s location in the center of the bay, along with its friable turf of sand and silt, leaves it dangerously exposed and fragile.
From New York Times ● Jul. 6, 2016
Soil: Choose a potting mix that is friable and drains quickly, such as a "cactus mix."
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 3, 2016
Now there were open fields among the lakes and forests, fields with the crumbly friable soil potatoes love.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.