different between fragile vs sensible
fragile
English
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French fragile, from Latin fragilis, formed on frag-, the root of frangere (“to break”). Cognate fraction, fracture and doublet of frail.
Pronunciation
- (UK, General Australian, Canada) IPA(key): /?f?æd?a?l/
- (US) IPA(key): /?f?æd??l/
- Rhymes: -æd??l
Adjective
fragile (comparative fragiler or more fragile, superlative fragilest or most fragile)
- Easily broken or destroyed, and thus often of subtle or intricate structure.
- The chemist synthesizes a fragile molecule.
- The UN tries to maintain the fragile peace process in the region.
- He is a very fragile person and gets easily depressed.
- (Britain) Feeling weak or easily disturbed as a result of illness.
Synonyms
- friable
- breakly
- breakable
- destroyable
- destructible
- See also Thesaurus:fragile
Antonyms
- durable
- unbreakable
- undestroyable
- indestructible
- antifragile
Derived terms
- fragilely
Related terms
- fractal
- fraction
- fractional
- fracture
- fragility
- frail
- frailty
- frangible
Translations
French
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin fragilis. Doublet of frêle.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /f?a.?il/
- Homophone: fragiles
Adjective
fragile (plural fragiles)
- fragile
Related terms
- fragiliser
- fragilité
Further reading
- “fragile” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Anagrams
- giflera
German
Adjective
fragile
- inflection of fragil:
- strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
- strong nominative/accusative plural
- weak nominative all-gender singular
- weak accusative feminine/neuter singular
Italian
Etymology
From Latin fragilis.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?fra.d??i.le/
- Hyphenation: frà?gi?le
Adjective
fragile (plural fragili)
- fragile
Derived terms
- fragilmente
- infragilire
Related terms
- frale
- fragilità
Further reading
- fragile in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
Latin
Adjective
fragile
- nominative neuter singular of fragilis
- accusative neuter singular of fragilis
- vocative neuter singular of fragilis
fragile From the web:
- what fragile mean
- what fragile x syndrome
- what fragile pills do
- what's fragile masculinity
- what's fragile x
- what fragile means in tagalog
- what's fragile in filipino
- what's fragile watermarking
sensible
English
Etymology
From Latin s?nsibilis (“perceptible by the senses, having feeling, sensible”), from senti? (“to feel, perceive”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?sen.s?.bl?/
- (General American) IPA(key): /?s?n.s?.bl?/
Adjective
sensible (comparative more sensible, superlative most sensible or sensiblest)
- (now dated or formal) Perceptible by the senses.
- 1751, John Arbuthnot, An Essay Concerning the Effects of Air on Human Bodies (page 1)
- Air is sensible to the Touch by its Motion, and by its Resistance to Bodies moved in it.
- 1778, William Lewis, The New Dispensatory (page 91)
- The sensible qualities of argentina promise no great virtue of this kind; for to the taste it discovers only a slight roughishness, from whence it may be presumed to be entitled to a place only among the milder corroborants.
- 1902, William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience, Folio Society 2008, page 45:
- It has been vouchsafed, for example, to very few Christian believers to have had a sensible vision of their Saviour.
- 1751, John Arbuthnot, An Essay Concerning the Effects of Air on Human Bodies (page 1)
- Easily perceived; appreciable.
- The discovery of the mines of America […] does not seem to have had any very sensible effect upon the prices of things in England.
- (archaic) Able to feel or perceive.
- (archaic) Liable to external impression; easily affected; sensitive.
- a sensible thermometer
- Of or pertaining to the senses; sensory.
- (archaic) Cognizant; having the perception of something; aware of something.
- , Book II, Chapter I
- He cannot think at any time, waking or sleeping, without being sensible of it.
- 1810, Thomas Green, Extracts from the diary of a lover of literature
- we are now sensible that it would have been absurd
- , Book II, Chapter I
- Acting with or showing good sense; able to make good judgements based on reason.
- 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 230b.
- They ask questions of someone who thinks he's got something sensible to say on some matter when actually he hasn't.
- 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 230b.
- Characterized more by usefulness or practicality than by fashionableness, especially of clothing.
- 1999, Neil Gaiman, Stardust (2001 Perennial Edition), page 8,
- They would walk, on fair evenings, around the village, and discuss the theory of crop rotation, and the weather, and other such sensible matters.
- 1999, Neil Gaiman, Stardust (2001 Perennial Edition), page 8,
Usage notes
- "Sensible" describes the reasonable way in which a person may think about things or do things:
- It wouldn't be sensible to start all over again now.
- It is not comparable to its cognates in certain languages (see below).
- "Sensitive" describes an emotional way in which a person may react to things:
- He has always been a sensitive child.
- I didn’t realize she was so sensitive about her work.
Related terms
- sense
- sensory
- sensual
- sensuous
- supersensible
Translations
Noun
sensible (plural sensibles)
- (obsolete) Sensation; sensibility.
- (obsolete) That which impresses itself on the senses; anything perceptible.
- 1857, William Fleming, Vocabulary of Philosophyyy
- Aristotle distinguished sensibles into common and proper.
- 1857, William Fleming, Vocabulary of Philosophyyy
- (obsolete) That which has sensibility; a sensitive being.
- This melancholy extends itself not to men only, but even to vegetals and sensibles.
Further reading
- sensible in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- sensible in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
- sensible at OneLook Dictionary Search
Catalan
Etymology
From Latin s?nsibilis, attested from the 14th century.
Pronunciation
- (Balearic, Central) IPA(key): /s?n?si.bl?/
- (Valencian) IPA(key): /sen?si.ble/
Adjective
sensible (masculine and feminine plural sensibles)
- sentient
- sensitive
Derived terms
- sensiblement
Related terms
- insensible
- sensibilitat
- sentir
References
Further reading
- “sensible” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “sensible” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “sensible” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /s??.sibl/
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Latin s?nsibilis.
Adjective
sensible (plural sensibles)
- sensitive
Derived terms
- sensibilité
- sensiblement
Related terms
- sentir
Etymology 2
Ellipsis of note sensible.
Noun
sensible f (plural sensibles)
- (music) leading tone
Further reading
- “sensible” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
German
Pronunciation
Adjective
sensible
- inflection of sensibel:
- strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
- strong nominative/accusative plural
- weak nominative all-gender singular
- weak accusative feminine/neuter singular
Spanish
Etymology
From Latin s?nsibilis.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sen?sible/, [s?n?si.??le]
Adjective
sensible (plural sensibles)
- sensitive
- sentient
- responsive
Usage notes
- Sensible is a false friend, and does not mean reasonable in Spanish. Spanish equivalents are shown above, in the "Translations" section of the English entry sensible.
Antonyms
- insensible
Related terms
Further reading
- “sensible” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.
sensible From the web:
- what sensible means
- what sensible heat
- what's sensible in french
- sensible meaning in arabic
- what's sensible temperature
- what sensible perspiration
- what sensible horizon
- what's sensible in hindi
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