noun
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the state or quality of being infirm
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physical weakness or debility; frailty
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a moral flaw or failing
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of infirmity
1325–75; Middle English infirmite < Latin infirmitās. See infirm, -ity
Explanation
A weakness or disability, especially due to old age, is called an infirmity. The noun infirmity, when used alone, is generally understood to mean physical frailty. If you want to imply mental weakness or some other disability, then use an adjective for clarity, as in this example: "His mental infirmity was caused by an early onset of Alzheimer's disease." Don't confuse infirmity with infirmary. The latter is a place where the sick and infirm go to recover: "Because of her infirmity, she often ended up being seen by doctors at the infirmary."
Vocabulary lists containing infirmity
The Tragedy of Macbeth
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Julius Caesar
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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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.
See Examples For:
On the whole, Americans don’t do that, largely believing that age and infirmity only matter if they impede on a person’s ability to do their job.
From Salon ● Nov. 19, 2025
Boxer, who turns 85 next month, offered no counsel to Pelosi, though she pushed back against the notion that age necessarily equates with infirmity, or political obsolescence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2025
The old guard has a lock on how things run—and OK, yes, at least a few of them seem to be dealing with actual infirmity.
From Slate ● Jun. 14, 2024
The bandage drapes the left hamstring, whose infirmity might have made Djokovic’s three-set win over Grigor Dimitrov in Saturday’s third round sort of a surprise.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 21, 2023
Pale and bruised, lean to the point of infirmity, he shambles toward the bed.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
The U.K. offers a cash allowance of up to $260 or so a week for those who struggle with basic functions like bathing, preparing food or managing finances because of physical or mental infirmities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Hiding infirmities from the public is a recurring theme in American politics.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
When he studied the brochures of eight CCRCs across the country, the infirmities and dependencies of old age seemed buried.
From MarketWatch ● May 8, 2026
It was a sign of changing times, which were not kind to Feinstein, and not just because of the physical and mental infirmities that came with her advanced age.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2023
But if I wanted a crack at the summit, I knew that I had no choice but to ignore my infirmities and climb.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
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.
