frangible

[ fran-juh-buhl ]

adjective

1. easily broken; breakable:

   Most frangible toys are not suitable for young children.

   Synonyms: frail, fragile

frangible

/ ˈfrændʒɪbəl /

adjective

1. breakable or fragile

Derived Forms

• ˌfrangiˈbility, noun

Other Words From

• frangi·bili·ty frangi·ble·ness noun
• nonfran·gi·bili·ty noun
• non·frangi·ble adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of frangible¹

1375–1425; late Middle English < Old French, derivative of Latin frangere to break; -ible

Word History and Origins

Origin of frangible¹

C15: from Old French, ultimately from Latin frangere to break

Example Sentences

As a child of Los Angeles, I have a relationship with reality that is frangible at best.

From Los Angeles Times

But, before us, entombed in the banks of the stream, was a mucky tropical sea bottom, where thin, frangible layers of gray siltstone marked the passage of centuries.

From The New Yorker

The authors go deep into the patent registry to extract strange nuggets of industrial poetry: “mouth comfort” and “sealable coupling” and “frangible closure” and “upstanding thumb catches.”

From New York Times

Among other “neglected” words it wants to revive are “couth,” which means cultured, refined and well-mannered, and “frangible,” referring to something that’s fragile.

From Seattle Times

Among other “neglected” words it wants to revive are “couth,” which means cultured, refined and well-mannered, and “frangible,” referring to something that’s fragile.

From Washington Times