fragile

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfɹæd͡ʒaɪl/ (UK); /ˈfɹæd͡ʒəl/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is a back-formation from fragility, influenced by Middle French fragile, or a direct borrowing of the French,^[2][3] from Latin fragilis (“easily broken”),^[2][3][4] from the root of frangō (“to break”),^[2][3] from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (“to break”).^[3] It is a doublet of frail.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Morally weak, liable to sin: 1513 in Barnhart and the OED (fragyll), the 1510s in Etymonline;^[2][5][3] Merriam-Webster dates it to 1521.^[6]

Semantic evolution

Easily broken is first recorded in Shakespeare's Timon of Athens (1607),^[2][5] and the New Oxford dates it to the mid-16th century.^[7] Of a person, frail or delicate in health, it is from 1858.^[2][3][5] Fragile goods, fragiles, is from 1882.^[5]

Timeline

• 1513 – morally weak.^[2][5]
• 1607 – easily broken.^[2][5]
• 1858 – of frail constitution.^[2][3]
• 1882 – fragiles, fragile goods.^[5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Easily broken or damaged; delicate.
2. Weak in health or emotionally; frail.
3. Slight or tenuous: a fragile peace.

Word family

• fragilely
• fragility
• nonfragile
• unfragile
• fragile X syndrome

Related words

• fractal
• fraction
• fractional
• fracture
• frail
• frailty
• frangible
• fragment

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press