- Likely to break, snap, or crack, as when subjected to pressure: brittle bones.
- Easily damaged or disrupted; fragile: a brittle friendship. See synonyms at fragile.
- Difficult to deal with; snappish: a brittle disposition.
- Lacking warmth of feeling; cold: a reputation for being brittle and aloof.
- Brilliantly sharp, as in percussive sound.
- Perishable.
- Fleeting; transitory.
A confection of caramelized sugar to which nuts are added: walnut brittle.
[Middle English britel, probably from Old English *brytel, from bryttian, to shatter.]
brittlely brit'tle·ly (brĭt'l-ē) adv.brittleness brit'tle·ness n.





