I Swear English › Vocabulary A–Z › Brittle
What does ‘Brittle’ mean?
Describes something that is hard but fractures or breaks easily. Brittle refers only to hard rigid object that break when put under stress, it cannot be used for malleable things that bend. Something that snaps easily. When things are very dry they tend to be brittle. There is a sweet called peanut brittle, which is a mixture of caramelised sugar and peanuts, it is hard, but if if you hit it, it smashes easily as it is brittle.
“At low temperatures iron is brittle and can sometimes be broken by a sharp blow”.
“Osteoporosis (calcium depletion) results in people having brittle bones that fracture easily”.
Watch: ‘Brittle’ explained
Video transcript
B is for Brittle. Brittle means breaks easily. It's an adjective to describe something that snaps easily. It doesn't bend, it just snaps. Ktkkkt! OK, for example, dry wood is brittle, it breaks easily, it snaps. Ktkkkt! Glass for example, it snaps easily, it breaks easily. OK, for example also, there's a disease for... that... that people can have, when they don't have enough calcium in their bones. This gives them brittle bones. The bones in their body break easily. OK, so brittle, an adjective describing something that snaps easily. Easily broken. So, B is for brittle. Thanks for watching. See you soon.
More from the Vocabulary A–Z
Keep building your word power — every word comes with examples and a short video: