Friable

Pronunciation

• enPR: frÄ«'É™-bÉ™l, IPA: /ˈfɹaɪəblÌ©/
• Rhymes: -aɪəbÉ™l

Origin

Latin friābilis, from friō ("to crumble").

Full definition of friable

Adjective

1. Easily broken into small fragments, crumbled, or reduced to powder.
• 1977, Angela Carter, The Passion of New Eve:Spiders had woven their vague trapezes between the friable heads of dead peonies in enormous glass jars streaked with tide marks where the water had evaporated long ago.
• 1983, Lawrence Durrell, Sebastian, Faber & Faber 2004 (Avignon Quintet), p. 1020:This light, friable type of material offered excellent insulation against both desert heat and also the cold of darkness during the winter.
2. (of soil) Loose and large-grained in consistency.
3. (of poison, poisons) Likely to crumble and become airborne, thus becoming a health risk
• April 1987, Old-House JournalIt is when asbestos-containing products are friable that hazardous asbestos fibers are likely to be released and sent airborne.

Synonyms

• (easily broken into small fragments) crumbly

Derived terms

• friableness
• friably
• friability