What does friable mean?

Definitions for friable
ˈfraɪ ə bəlfri·able

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word friable.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. crumbly, friableadjective

    easily broken into small fragments or reduced to powder

    "friable sandstone"; "friable carcinomatous tissue"; "friable curds formed in the stomach";"crumbly cookies"

Wiktionary

  1. friableadjective

    Easily broken into small fragments, crumbled, or reduced to powder.

  2. friableadjective

    Loose and large-grained in consistency.

  3. friableadjective

    Likely to crumble and become airborne, thus becoming a health risk

  4. Etymology: friabilis, from frio.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. FRIABLEadjective

    Easily crumbled; easily reduced to powder.

    Etymology: friable, French; friabilis, Latin.

    A spongy excrescence groweth upon the roots of the lasertree, and sometimes on cedar, very white, light, and friable, which we call agarick. Francis Bacon, Natural History.

    The liver, of all the viscera, is the most friable, and easily crumbled or dissolved. John Arbuthnot, on Diet.

Wikipedia

  1. friable

    In materials science, friability ( FRY-ə-BIL-ə-tee), the condition of being friable, describes the tendency of a solid substance to break into smaller pieces under duress or contact, especially by rubbing. The opposite of friable is indurate. Substances that are designated hazardous, such as asbestos or crystalline silica, are often said to be friable if small particles are easily dislodged and become airborne, and hence respirable (able to enter human lungs), thereby posing a health hazard. Tougher substances, such as concrete, may also be mechanically ground down and reduced to finely divided mineral dust. However, such substances are not generally considered friable because of the degree of difficulty involved in breaking the substance's chemical bonds through mechanical means. Some substances, such as polyurethane foams, show an increase in friability with exposure to ultraviolet radiation, as in sunlight. Friable is sometimes used metaphorically to describe "brittle" personalities who can be "rubbed" by seemingly-minor stimuli to produce extreme emotional responses.

ChatGPT

  1. friable

    Friable refers to a material or substance that is easily crumbled or reduced to powder. It generally indicates something that has a fragile texture or is brittle in nature. This term is often used in various fields such as geology, ecology, and medicine.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Friableadjective

    easily crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder

  2. Etymology: [L. friabilis, fr. friare to rub, break, or crumble into small pieces, cf. fricare to rub, E. fray: cf. F. friable.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Friable

    frī′a-bl, adj. apt to crumble: easily reduced to powder.—ns. Frī′ableness, Friabil′ity. [Fr.,—L. friabilisfriāre, friātum, to crumble.]

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of friable in Chaldean Numerology is: 4

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of friable in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Popularity rank by frequency of use

friable#10000#92897#100000

Translations for friable

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"friable." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/friable>.

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