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Fragile vs Frail - What's the difference?

fragile | frail |

Frail is a related term of fragile.



As adjectives the difference between fragile and frail

is that fragile is easily broken or destroyed, and thus often of subtle or intricate structure while frail is easily broken; mentally or physically fragile; not firm or durable; liable to fail and perish; easily destroyed; not tenacious of life; weak; infirm.

As a noun frail is

a basket made of rushes, used chiefly for containing figs and raisins.

As a verb frail is

to play a stringed instrument, usually a banjo, by picking with the back of a fingernail.

fragile

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Easily broken or destroyed, and thus often of subtle or intricate structure.
    • The chemist synthesizes a fragile molecule.
    The UN tries to maintain the fragile peace process in the region.
    He is a very fragile person and gets easily depressed.

    Synonyms

    * friable * breakly * breakable * destroyable * destructible * See also

    Antonyms

    * durable * unbreakable * undestroyable * indestructible

    Derived terms

    * fragilely

    Related terms

    * fractal * fraction * fractional * fracture * fragility * frail * frailty * frangible

    frail

    English

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Easily broken; mentally or physically fragile; not firm or durable; liable to fail and perish; easily destroyed; not tenacious of life; weak; infirm.
  • Liable to fall from virtue or be led into sin; not strong against temptation; weak in resolution; unchaste.

    • Related terms

    * fractal * fraction * fractional * fracture * fragile * fragility * frailly * frailness * frailty

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A basket made of rushes, used chiefly for containing figs and raisins.
  • The quantity of raisins contained in a frail.
  • A rush for weaving baskets.
  • (dated, slang) A girl.
  • * 1931 , (Cab Calloway) / (Irving Mills), ‘Minnie the Moocher’:
    • She was the roughest, toughest frail , but Minnie had a heart as big as a whale.
  • * 1933 , , , edition 1, Book 2, Chapter XXII:
    • There were five people in the Quirinal bar after dinner, a high-class Italian frail who sat on a stool making persistent conversation against the bartender's bored: “Si ... Si ... Si,” a light, snobbish Egyptian who was lonely but chary of the woman, and the two Americans.
  • * 1939 , (Raymond Chandler), The Big Sleep , Penguin 2011, p. 148:
    • ‘She's pickin' 'em tonight, right on the nose,’ he said. ‘That tall black-headed frail .’
  • * 1941 , Preston Sturges, '', published in ''Five Screenplays , ISBN 0-520-05442-4, page 77:
    • Sullivan, the girl and the butler get to the ground. The girl wears a turtle-neck sweater, a cap slightly sideways, a torn coat, turned-up pants and sneakers.
    SULLIVAN Why don't you go back with the car... You look about as much like a boy as .
    THE GIRL All right, they'll think I'm your frail .

    References

    *

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To play a stringed instrument, usually a banjo, by picking with the back of a fingernail.

    • Anagrams

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