Emily Dickinson Lexicon
Definition for Brittle
brittle, adj. [ME < OE < Germanic 'to break'.]
- Fragile; delicate; easily broken; not tough; physically weak; [fig.] insecure; vulnerable; mortal; subject to death.
- Elite; snobbish; temperamental; particular; fussy; finicky; persnickety; dainty; fastidious; high-strung; overly refined; easily disturbed.
- Tenuous; feeble; insubstantial.
- Frayed; frazzled; unraveling; coming apart; not tenacious.
- Unpredictable; erratic; [fig.] aimless; drifting; floating; mercurial; quicksilver.
- Unstable; unsteady; shifting; structurally weak; [fig.] dubious; doubtful; tentative; provisional.
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