brittle
adjective
brit·tle
| \ ˈbri-tᵊl
\
\
brittler\ ˈbrit-lər
, ˈbri-tᵊl-ər \;
brittlest\ ˈbrit-ləst
, ˈbri-tᵊl-əst \
, ˈbri-tᵊl-ər \;
brittlest\ ˈbrit-ləst
, ˈbri-tᵊl-əst \
Definition of brittle
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a
: easily broken, cracked, or snapped
brittle clay brittle glass
b
: easily disrupted, overthrown, or damaged : frail
a brittle friendship
2a
: perishable, mortal
b
: transitory, evanescent
3
: easily hurt or offended : sensitive
a brittle personality
4
: sharp
the brittle staccato of snare drums
5
: lacking warmth, depth, or generosity of spirit : cold
a brittle selfish person
6
medical
: affected with or being a form of type 1 diabetes characterized by large and unpredictable fluctuations in blood glucose level
brittle
nounDefinition of brittle (Entry 2 of 2)
: a candy made with caramelized sugar and nuts spread in thin sheets
peanut brittle
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Other Words from brittle
Adjective
brittlely
\ ˈbri-tᵊl-(l)ē
\
adverb
\
adverb
brittleness
\ ˈbri-tᵊl-nəs
\
noun
\
noun
Synonyms for brittle
Synonyms: Adjective
brickle [dialect], crisp, crispy, crumbly, embrittled, flaky (also flakey), friable, short
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Examples of brittle in a Sentence
Adjective
a brittle cracker that turned into crumbs in my pocket a brittle apology that was anything but heartfeltRecent Examples on the Web: Adjective
Tungsten is normally brittle, so procedures to mechanically process it to increase its strength and to alloy it with other materials to prevent its embrittlement from radiation damage are being studied. — Giulia Pacchioni, Scientific American, "The Road to Fusion," 26 Aug. 2019 The brittle fitting, an inch and a quarter in diameter, had been mistakenly installed during a previous repair. — Author: Richard Read, Anchorage Daily News, "Meet the icebreaker Polar Star, the neglected stepchild of the U.S. military industrial complex," 17 Aug. 2019 But, her hair was found to be too brittle and delicate to be able to hold them in properly. — Elizabeth Gulino, House Beautiful, "Woman Loses Clumps of Hair After Using Walmart Shampoo, Prompting Concerns It Was Tampered With," 1 Aug. 2019 Brennan, who has a condition known as brittle-bone disease and uses a wheelchair, has tried to distance himself from 8chan and its current owners. — Kevin Roose, BostonGlobe.com, "8chan’s founder is fed up. ‘Shut the site down,’ he says," 4 Aug. 2019 The 20,000 eucalyptus trees planted a century ago were meant to be harvested for railroad ties but proved too brittle for that purpose. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Scripps Ranch: Family-friendly spot set in an imported eucalyptus forest," 30 June 2019 After a decade of highlights, bleach, and daily hot tools, my strands were dry and brittle. — Elizabeth Denton, Allure, "Virtue's New Protein Powder Made My Damaged, Color-Treated Hair Look Like New," 19 Mar. 2019 Since 2010, Lick Ice Cream has grown a reputation for nontraditional ice cream flavors such as gorgonzola candied pecan and rosewater pistachio brittle. — Emily Sabens, Indianapolis Star, "Forget vanilla and chocolate. Try some of these unique ice cream flavors in Indianapolis.," 13 Aug. 2017 The latest batch of employment data, expected Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET, will help sort out crosscurrents, from resilient consumers to brittle manufacturing. — Sarah Chaney, WSJ, "What the June Jobs Report Tells Us About the U.S. Economy," 5 July 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Dessert is perfectly pleasant: lemon poppy-seed cake with rhubarb and whipped crème fraîche, dark chocolate cake with peanut brittle and Toscanini’s excellent B3 ice cream (the star of the dish). — Devra First, BostonGlobe.com, "Why is one of Boston’s best new restaurants in Newton?," 30 Apr. 2018 Monica's Confection Connection will be at all three markets this week with a large selection of sweet treats including brittles, caramels, salted caramels, gummies and fudge. — Steve Edwards, Anchorage Daily News, "Feed your Super Bowl party guests right with seafood from local markets," 31 Jan. 2018 Chipping your tooth on peanut brittle, getting a hitch in your get-a-long, or having your mother-in-law visit for the third time in one month are all legitimate reasons to have your heart sincerely blessed. — Leslie Anne Tarabella, AL.com, "'Bless your heart' is a good thing," 10 Apr. 2018 The basket-fillers include ½-pound chocolate fudge Easter bunnies, gummies, caramels, salted caramels and a wide selection of brittles. — Steve Edwards, Anchorage Daily News, "Easter treats are hopping to a farmers market near you," 21 Mar. 2018 The Triple Play Blizzard mixes soft-serve ice cream with caramel-coated peanuts, caramel popcorn brittle and chocolate chunks. — Jennifer Mcclellan, azcentral, "Dairy Queen to sell baseball Blizzards on Opening Day in 15 lucky cities, and Phoenix is one of them," 28 Mar. 2018 Vietnamese caramel and pine nut brittle joined a succulent chunk of seabass in the fifth course. — Domenica Bongiovanni, Indianapolis Star, "A new dinner with Indy's best chefs is selling out at $150 a plate. Here's why.," 19 Mar. 2018 Smitten Kitchen Everyday, by the award-winning blogger Deb Perelman, spans such clever, crowd-pleasing recipes as two-ingredient oat brittle, leek-and-feta savory pie, and pretzel linzer cookies. — Emily Saladino, USA TODAY, "2017's best food and beverage books," 21 Dec. 2017 The recipe for candied almonds makes more than enough for the salad, and can also double as almond brittle, a handmade gift in itself. — Birmingham Magazine, AL.com, "Enjoy Christmas citrus with these tasty recipes," 13 Dec. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'brittle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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