different between infirm vs imbecile

English

Etymology

From Middle English infirme, from Latin infirmus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?f?m/
• Rhymes: -??(?)m

Adjective

infirm (comparative infirmer, superlative infirmest)

1. Weak or ill, not in good health.

   He was infirm of body but still keen of mind, and though it looked like he couldn't walk across the room, he crushed me in debate.

   • c. 1605, William Shakespeare, King Lear, Act III, Scene 2,^[1]

     […] Here I stand your slave,

     A poor, infirm, weak, and despis’d old man.

2. Irresolute; weak of mind or will.
   • c. 1605, William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act II, Scene 2,^[2]

     Infirm of purpose!

     Give me the daggers: […]

   • 1797, Edmund Burke, A Third Letter to a Member of the Present Parliament: On the Proposals for Peace with the Regicide Directory of France, London: F.&C. Rivington, p. 30,^[3]

     […] vehement passion does not always indicate an infirm judgment.

3. Frail; unstable; insecure.
   • 1667, Robert South, “The Practice of Religion Enforced by Reason” in Twelve Sermons Preached upon Several Occasions, London: Thomas Bennet, p. 3,^[4]

     He who fixes upon false Principles, treads upon Infirm ground, and so sinks […]

Synonyms

• crank, ill, sick, unwell

Related terms

• infirmary

Translations

Verb

infirm (third-person singular simple present infirms, present participle infirming, simple past and past participle infirmed)

1. To contradict, to provide proof that something is not.

   The thought is that you see an episode of observation, experiment, or reasoning as confirming or infirming a hypothesis depending on whether your probability for it increases or decreases during the episode.

Synonyms

• disconfirm

Antonyms

• confirm

Derived terms

• infirmation

Translations

Anagrams

• Firmin

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /in?firm/

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French infirme, from Latin infirmus.

Adjective

infirm m or n (feminine singular infirm?, masculine plural infirmi, feminine and neuter plural infirme)

1. crippled

   Synonyms: invalid, schilod, beteag

Declension

Related terms

• infirmitate

Noun

infirm m (plural infirmi, feminine equivalent infirm?)

1. cripple, invalid

   Synonyms: invalid, schilod

Declension

Etymology 2

Inflected form of infirma (“to invalidate”).

Verb

infirm

1. inflection of infirma:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. first-person singular present subjunctive

English

Etymology

From Middle French imbécile, from Latin imb?cillus (“weak, feeble”), literally “without a staff”.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?mb??si?l/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /??mb?s?l/, /??mb?s?l/

Noun

imbecile (plural imbeciles)

1. (obsolete) A person with limited mental capacity who can perform tasks and think only like a young child, in medical circles meaning a person who lacks the capacity to develop beyond the mental age of a normal five to seven-year-old child.
2. (derogatory) A fool, an idiot.

Usage notes

• In modern times, “imbecile” is often used in jocular insults.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:idiot

Derived terms

• imbecilic (adjective)
• imbecility (noun)

Translations

Adjective

imbecile (comparative more imbecile, superlative most imbecile)

1. (dated) Destitute of strength, whether of body or mind; feeble; impotent; especially, mentally weak.

   hospitals for the imbecile and insane