— fragilely , adv. — fragility /freuh jil"i tee/ , fragileness , n.
/fraj"euhl/ ; Brit. /fraj"uyl/ , adj.
1. easily broken, shattered, or damaged; delicate; brittle; frail: a fragile ceramic container; a very fragile alliance.
2. vulnerably delicate, as in appearance: She has a fragile beauty.
3. lacking in substance or force; flimsy: a fragile excuse.
[ 1505-15; fragilis, equiv. to frag- (var. s. of frangere to BREAK) + -ilis -ILE ]
Syn. 1. See frail 1 .