frail
[adjective]
Synonyms: weak, delicate, feeble, flimsy, fragile, infirm, insubstantial, puny, vulnerable

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Antonyms: robust
Contrasted words: hale, healthy, sound, solid, substantial
Related Words: slender, slight, slim, tenuous, thin, petty, puny

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English Thesaurus: fragile, delicate, brittle, breakable, flimsy, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

frail /freɪl/ adjective
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: Old French; Origin: fraile, from Latin fragilis, from frangere 'to break']

1. someone who is frail is weak and thin because they are old or ill:
frail elderly people
her frail health
frail body/physique
mentally/physically frail

2. something that is frail is easily damaged or broken Synonym : fragile:
It seemed impossible that these frail boats could survive in such a storm.
the country’s frail economy

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

frail
adj.
VERBS be, look, seem | become, get, grow
ADV. extremely, very | increasingly | rather | mentally, physically Many old people become mentally frail.
PHRASES old and frail She looked old and frail.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

fragile easily broken or damaged:
The documents are old and very fragile.
a fragile glass case
The seventeenth century wall hangings are extemely fragile.
delicate easily damaged – used especially about things that are made from thin material and look attractive:
a delicate gold necklace
The plant has delicate blue flowers.
delicate fabrics
brittle brittle hair, nails, bones etc have a hard surface, but they break easily, especially because they are not in good condition:
As you get older, your bones become more brittle.
a special shampoo for dry and brittle hair
breakable breakable objects must be handled carefully because they will break easily:
Put breakable objects out of the reach of children.
breakable ornaments
flimsy made of thin material that tears easily, or badly-made and likely to break easily:
a flimsy cotton shirt
a flimsy wooden table
frail especially literary not strong and therefore easy to break, damage, or hurt:
The young trees are frail and need to be protected from the wind.
a frail little fishing boat
a frail old lady

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

weak not physically strong, sometimes because you are ill:
Tom’s had flu and he’s still feeling weak.
The doctors said she was too weak to have an operation.
He suffered constantly from a weak chest.
frail weak and thin, especially because you are old:
a frail 85-year-old lady
My grandfather’s becoming quite frail now.
shaky feeling weak in your legs and only able to walk slowly and unsteadily:
When I came out of hospital I was a bit shaky for a while.
puny /ˈpjuːni/ especially disapproving small, thin, and looking very weak:
his puny white arms
He was a puny little boy who was often bullied at school.
feeble especially written weak and unable to do much because you are very ill, very old or young:
For a week she was too feeble to get out of bed.
a tiny, feeble baby
delicate weak and often becoming ill easily:
a delicate child
She had rather a delicate constitution (=her body easily became ill).
infirm formal weak or ill for a long time, especially because you are old:
a residential home for people who are elderly and infirm
There are special facilities for wheelchair users and infirm guests.
malnourished formal weak or ill because you have not had enough good food to eat:
Half a million people there are severely malnourished.
The organization provides emergency feeding for malnourished children.
fragile made of a thin material that is easy to break or damage – used when something needs to be handled carefully:
a fragile china vase
Be careful of those glasses – they’re very fragile.
flimsy not well-made from strong materials and so easily damaged – used about furniture, houses etc:
a flimsy plastic table
This keyboard’s very cheap but it’s a bit flimsy.
rickety /ˈrɪkəti, ˈrɪkɪti/ in very bad condition and likely to break – used about a building, piece of furniture, vehicle etc:
a rickety old bicycle
He lived in a rickety hut on the beach for several years.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲