friable

American  

[frahy-uh-buhl] / ˈfraɪ ə bəl /

adjective

1. easily crumbled or reduced to powder; crumbly.

   friable rock.

   Synonyms:

   frangible, fragile

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friable British  

/ ˈfraɪəbəl /

adjective

1. easily broken up; crumbly

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Other Word Forms

• friability noun
• friableness noun
• unfriable adjective
• unfriableness noun

Etymology

Origin of friable

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin friābilis, equivalent to friā(re) “to rub, crumble” + -ābilis -able

Example Sentences

Britain is a “defiant but friable little nation floating off the edge of a continent” that itself is “an appendix of Asia.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

The Army Corps, he wrote, “estimates that 50% of the sites on the property contain friable asbestos.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2025

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

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

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