frangible
adjective
fran·gi·ble ˈfran-jə-bəl 
: readily or easily broken
frangibility
ˌfran-jə-ˈbi-lə-tē
noun 
Synonyms
- breakable
- delicate
- fragile
- frail
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
frangible china teacups that were totally inappropriate for a child's birthday party
Recent Examples on the Web If the boat does not stop, the Interceptor pulls alongside and the agent fires with disintegrating frangible ammunition into the boat’s engine. 
New York Times, 28 Jan. 2021 Nagel pumped the shotgun and chambered the first frangible round. New York Times, 28 Jan. 2021 At 1,000 metres, a frangible bolt—which was supposed to detach explosively in the event of power loss to shed weight—broke off. The Economist, 6 Sep. 2019 Now the team, led by Professor of Computer Vision Paul Rosin, is asking for more texts too fragile to be opened, hoping to ease the burden on historical researchers hesitant to examine the frangible objects. Sam Blum, Popular Mechanics, 4 Oct. 2018 Details needed to be worked out, such as a requirement that school guns fire only frangible bullets, which break apart into small pieces and are unlikely to pass through victims, as a way to limit the danger to innocent students. Todd C. Frankel, Washington Post, 19 May 2018 Ascendance International was exhibiting its trademark frangible bullets with a full-auto AR-15. Elliott Woods, The New Republic, 16 Apr. 2018 This guy visited Bam two months ago to take extensive touristpictures of Bam’s famous and highly frangible mud-brick structures. Wired Staff, WIRED, 30 Dec. 2003 See More
New York Times, 28 Jan. 2021 Nagel pumped the shotgun and chambered the first frangible round. New York Times, 28 Jan. 2021 At 1,000 metres, a frangible bolt—which was supposed to detach explosively in the event of power loss to shed weight—broke off. The Economist, 6 Sep. 2019 Now the team, led by Professor of Computer Vision Paul Rosin, is asking for more texts too fragile to be opened, hoping to ease the burden on historical researchers hesitant to examine the frangible objects. Sam Blum, Popular Mechanics, 4 Oct. 2018 Details needed to be worked out, such as a requirement that school guns fire only frangible bullets, which break apart into small pieces and are unlikely to pass through victims, as a way to limit the danger to innocent students. Todd C. Frankel, Washington Post, 19 May 2018 Ascendance International was exhibiting its trademark frangible bullets with a full-auto AR-15. Elliott Woods, The New Republic, 16 Apr. 2018 This guy visited Bam two months ago to take extensive touristpictures of Bam’s famous and highly frangible mud-brick structures. Wired Staff, WIRED, 30 Dec. 2003 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English, borrowed from Middle French & Medieval Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Medieval Latin frangibilis, from Latin frangere "to break, shatter" + -ibilis -ible — more at break entry 1
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined above
frangibility
noun
as in fragility
the state or quality of having a delicate structure the frangibility of the tree ornaments makes them inappropriate for handling by children Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- fragility
- fineness
- exquisiteness
- daintiness
- brittleness
- diaphanousness
- delicacy
- flimsiness
- insubstantiality
- wispiness
- friability
- crumbliness
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- solidity
- roughness
- firmness
- strength
- rudeness
- crudity
- coarseness
- crudeness
- bread tree
- bread upon the waters
- bread wheat
- bread-and-but
- bread-and-butter
- bread-and-butter pickle
- bread-and-butter plate
- bread-crust bomb
- breadbasket
- breadbaskets
- breadberries
- breadboard
- breadboarded
- breadboarding
- breadboards
- breadboxes
- breadcrumbs
- breaded
- breaden
- breadfruit
- breadfruits
- breadgrain
- breading
- breadless
- breadline