frail

adjective

ˈfrāl 

1

: easily led into evil

frail humanity

2

: easily broken or destroyed : fragile

… frail, open-cockpit biplanes …

—Jonathan Weiner

3

a

: physically weak

a frail old woman

a frail voice

b

: slight, unsubstantial

smiled a minute frail smile

—Raymond Chandler

frailly

ˈfrā(l)-lē 

adverb

frailness noun

Synonyms

• breakable
• delicate
• fragile
• frangible

Choose the Right Synonym for frail

weak, feeble, frail, fragile, infirm, decrepit mean not strong enough to endure strain, pressure, or strenuous effort.

weak applies to deficiency or inferiority in strength or power of any sort.

felt weak after the surgery

feeble suggests extreme weakness inviting pity or contempt.

a feeble attempt to walk

frail implies delicacy and slightness of constitution or structure.

a frail teenager unable to enjoy sports

fragile suggests frailty and brittleness unable to resist rough usage.

a reclusive poet too fragile for the rigors of this world

infirm suggests instability, unsoundness, and insecurity due to old age or disabling illness.

infirm residents requiring constant care

decrepit implies being worn-out or broken-down from long use or old age.

the dowager's decrepit retainers

Examples of frail in a Sentence

In his old age his health became increasingly frail.

a small and frail ship

Recent Examples on the Web

No clear alternative exists in most legal documents when the frail or impaired aging parent refuses to resign and allow the competent adult child to take over, either financial decisions, healthcare decisions or both. —Carolyn Rosenblatt, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025

Last week, three male Israeli hostages who were released were frail and gaunt — appearing to be in worse condition than previous hostages Hamas released. —Daniel Estrin, NPR, 15 Feb. 2025

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday the sight of the frail hostages was shocking and would be addressed. —Joey Roulette, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025

Over the weekend, at Saturday’s hostage release — the fifth since the ceasefire agreement began Jan. 19 — Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Ohad Ben Ami looked frail and weak. —Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 10 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English frele, frayle, borrowed from Anglo-French frel, fraile, going back to Latin fragilis "liable to break, weak" — more at fragile

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for frail

• ail
• ale
• bail
• baile
• dail
• fail
• flail
• gael
• gail
• grail
• hail
• jail

Kids Definition

frail

adjective

ˈfrā(ə)l 

1

: easily led into evil

frail humanity

2

: fragile

3

: not having normal strength or force

spoke in a frail voice

frailly

ˈfrā(ə)l-lē 

adverb

frailness noun