Definition of feeble in English:

feeble

adjectivefeebler, feeblest ˈfiːb(ə)lˈfibəl

1Lacking physical strength, especially as a result of age or illness.
（尤指因年老或疾病而）虚弱的，衰弱的，乏力的
by now, he was too feeble to leave his room
Example sentencesExamples
- She tried to pull it open even though she knew that there was no way it was going to come open by her feeble strength.
- Weak and feeble, their gray feathers were sprinkled with fine grains of white salt.
- Our sin makes us feeble and craven, and we long to flee from the liberty of the sons of God; but where now can we go?
- Britain's hold on the colonies, though, ‘was the grip of a tired and feeble old man’.
- Today this peerless coach lies feeble and weak wanting assistance to meet his illness.
- Lacking any access to the strenuous life of the outdoors, they would be physically feeble.
- They have already cast an evil spell over the weak and feeble King Henry.
- Sometimes the pills make me feel faint and feeble.
- He cries weakly, the effort clearly straining his feeble body.
- A small feeble middle aged man, wearing a white coat and glasses.
- Eighty-year-old Lucy is a small feeble woman, but what she lacks in physical strength, she makes up for in character.
- After that, I was far too weak and feeble to lift a glass.
- It's too easy to choose the weakest, most feeble opponent and it's usually more about your own insecurities than a real challenge to combat.
- Truth be told, it's great and, weak and feeble as I can be, I love it.
- Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one?
- Protagonists are helpless and feeble, benighted, physically weak and powerless.
- She looks so weak and feeble from all her depression, but there's a strength in her now that was never there before.
- Upon seeing the seemingly weak and feeble counterpart behind him, he merely turned his attention back to blocking the other two and trying to escape.
- Occasionally she would have a fit of coughing, her body's very feeble last attempts at expelling her illness.
- But I'm convinced that what it releases is just my feeble reservoir of strength.
Synonyms
weak, weakly, weakened, puny, wasted, frail, infirm, delicate, sickly, ailing, unwell, poorly, failing, helpless, powerless, impotent, enfeebled, enervated, debilitated, incapacitated, effete
decrepit, doddering, doddery, tottering, tottery, shaky, trembling, trembly
Scottish shilpit
rare etiolated
1. 1.1 (of a sound) faint.
  （声音）无力的，微弱的，不清楚的
  her feeble cries of pain
  Example sentencesExamples
  Her voice was the volume of a hamster's adorable, feeble squeak.
  When asked what her strengths are she adopts a deliberately feeble voice and says, ‘I try really hard.’
  With a feeble squeak, his knees buckled, and he tumbled into a wall, eyes wide with shock.
  The mother made me literally force-feed him, shoving puréed food into his mouth as he cried piteously in feeble protest.
  There was a distinct amount of light filtering around the blinds and, through the window, the first feeble sounds of the dawn chorus.
  No matter how powerful and commanding your voice, it always sounds weak and feeble after loud music and graphics on a big screen, but the drama that was about to unfold really was a jarring contrast.
  It was surprising how feeble Wills's replies sounded.
  We suddenly heard a feeble clang of the gate - like someone was knocking, but not very hard.
  The computer beeped and then made a feeble sound.
  A little head peeped out of the broken egg, making a feeble sound.
  With a feeble murmur her head drooped backward from a sudden spell of dizziness.
  He didn't realize how much it hurt until I gave out a feeble cry.
  Jackson took one look at her afflicted walk, and scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her feeble cry of protest.
  Synonyms
  faint, dim, weak, pale, soft, subdued, muted, indistinct, unclear, vague
  informal wishy-washy
2. 1.2 Lacking strength of character.
  （性格）弱的，软弱的
  I know it's feeble but I've never been one to stand up for myself
  Example sentencesExamples
  Worse than the comedy, however, are the director's feeble attempts at character building.
  Janes's budget was obviously restricted, but this is no excuse for a feeble script.
  To do so is a common but intellectually feeble move, itself a defence against uncomfortable reality.
  The limp untheatricality and stale visual aesthetic of the production are feeble responses to the elemental power and ecstatic lyricism of Wagner's score.
  It has been known for years that the test is illogical and is a joke, but they have enough clout to be able to persuade a weak government and feeble ministers.
  Other performers, again, are remarkable for vivacity of action and elocution, who nevertheless are felt to be feeble and ineffective in rousing an audience to emotion.
  Until recently, the concern had been that the recovery in the euro zone was so pallid and feeble that the big euro zone economies could not take a rate increase.
  A Nietzschean may see it as a lie with which the feeble and timid console themselves for their inability to seize life as it should be seized.
  Much of what constitutes educative efforts in Christian communities today is bland, feeble, and ineffectual.
  In this time of war and destruction, a fearful thought, a threatening glance, were common and yet they still played with a weak mind or a feeble soul.
  His feeble attempt to strengthen the government's image failed.
  And on it goes, each lame joke greeted with feeble, self-regarding applause and laughter that comes like a slow belch.
  So far, the Bank of England's attempts to slow the consumer boom here look to have been as feeble as placing matchsticks in the path of an oncoming train.
  For a representative of a party caricatured for being rather feeble and spineless, he has been strikingly resolute throughout the crisis.
  I can't lay the blame on the police, they are just doing as they are told, and are probably as sick of the system as me, but I strongly lay it on our feeble and weak justice system today.
  The independent counsel's unprecedented challenge to the presidency evoked the most feeble and cowardly response from these quarters.
  It may have been too early to celebrate a nascent political vitality that remains, for now, too feeble and limited to convince that democracy is finally within our grasp.
  Synonyms
  cowardly, craven, faint-hearted, spineless, spiritless, lily-livered, chicken-livered, pigeon-hearted
  timid, timorous, fearful, unassertive, soft, weak, ineffective, ineffectual, inefficient, incompetent, inadequate, indecisive
  informal wishy-washy, wimpy, sissy, sissified, gutless, weak-kneed, yellow, yellow-bellied, chicken
  British informal wet
  North American informal candy-assed
  North American vulgar slang chickenshit
  archaic poor-spirited
3. 1.3 Failing to convince or impress.
  不能给人留下印象的，不具说服力的
  a feeble excuse
  难以服人的借口。
  Example sentencesExamples
  And journalists who are trying to get him to talk are getting a particularly feeble excuse for why he won't.
  Some of your ideas might sound feeble, even to your own ears.
  I don't care if it's part of underground culture or whatever other feeble excuse you've got, it's just plain rude.
  I didn't want to ask to sleep next to her because the words sounded feeble in my head, like a child was saying them.
  As my physics teacher wrote of my feeble efforts, years ago, ‘You can do better than this.’
  It always sounds so pathetic when you refer to it, like some sort of feeble attempt to impress.
  These sound pretty feeble reasons for Tony Blair to flunk the great test of his leadership.
  Nor are they convinced by the administration's decision on Wednesday to lower the terror alert from orange to yellow, a rather feeble attempt to demonstrate the wisdom of this war.
  When I re-read it in later years I realized that the plot was unrealistic, the dialogue feeble and the characterization nil.
  I could tell you that I only cry when I'm very sad or hurt, but those are feeble excuses, inadequate reasons for condoning my shameful crime.
  The feeble excuses some people try to swing are funny.
  But the comedy is slack, the song lyrics feeble, the pace torpid.
  We were always agreed, in good Augustinian fashion, that in a fallen world our best is but a faint intimation of, a feeble gesture toward, what ought to be.
  You'd end up writing a very pale and feeble imitation of a novel if you did that.
  And there always seems to be some feeble excuse or other in an attempt to defend their illicit actions, rather than admitting that most of them are just downright bad.
  However, those campaigns were no more than the feeble shouting of the weak, and did not impact the security and interests of other countries.
  On the contrary, the arguments are vague, slippery, feeble, circular or false.
  Anyway, on top of that well, I started getting these - I suppose ‘bad vibes’ is all I can describe them as, but that sounds so feeble.
  But was there any reason besides political correctness to produce such a feeble, boring piece in the first place?
  But of course, we all know that this feeble rubbish is only a weak-kneed attempt to be amusing.
  Synonyms
  ineffective, ineffectual, unsuccessful, inadequate, unconvincing, implausible, unsatisfactory, poor, weak, inept, tame, paltry, shallow, thin, flimsy, insubstantial
  futile, useless, profitless, fruitless

Derivatives

feebleness

noun ˈfiːb(ə)lnəs

I detected a certain feebleness of insight in these pieces.
Example sentencesExamples
- That, to me, would be tantamount to moral feebleness - and it would, in any case, fail in its aim.
- And, as always, our spirits rose after initial feebleness.
- The more important point, however, is that (to me at least) one of the measures of national power and greatness is the ability to suffer the insecurities and feebleness of weaker powers with a measure of grace.
- What puzzles me is the feebleness of the argument.

Origin

Middle English: from Old French fieble, earlier fleible, from Latin flebilis 'lamentable', from flere 'weep'.

This word is from Old French fieble, which was earlier spelt fleible, from Latin flebilis ‘lamentable’ from flere ‘to weep’.

Rhymes

enfeeble, Keble

Definition of feeble in US English:

feeble

adjectiveˈfēbəlˈfibəl

1Lacking physical strength, especially as a result of age or illness.
（尤指因年老或疾病而）虚弱的，衰弱的，乏力的
my legs are very feeble after the flu
患了流感之后，我的两条腿软弱无力。
Example sentencesExamples
- He cries weakly, the effort clearly straining his feeble body.
- It's too easy to choose the weakest, most feeble opponent and it's usually more about your own insecurities than a real challenge to combat.
- She tried to pull it open even though she knew that there was no way it was going to come open by her feeble strength.
- A small feeble middle aged man, wearing a white coat and glasses.
- Britain's hold on the colonies, though, ‘was the grip of a tired and feeble old man’.
- Occasionally she would have a fit of coughing, her body's very feeble last attempts at expelling her illness.
- Truth be told, it's great and, weak and feeble as I can be, I love it.
- Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one?
- But I'm convinced that what it releases is just my feeble reservoir of strength.
- Sometimes the pills make me feel faint and feeble.
- Our sin makes us feeble and craven, and we long to flee from the liberty of the sons of God; but where now can we go?
- Lacking any access to the strenuous life of the outdoors, they would be physically feeble.
- Upon seeing the seemingly weak and feeble counterpart behind him, he merely turned his attention back to blocking the other two and trying to escape.
- Weak and feeble, their gray feathers were sprinkled with fine grains of white salt.
- Protagonists are helpless and feeble, benighted, physically weak and powerless.
- They have already cast an evil spell over the weak and feeble King Henry.
- Today this peerless coach lies feeble and weak wanting assistance to meet his illness.
- Eighty-year-old Lucy is a small feeble woman, but what she lacks in physical strength, she makes up for in character.
- After that, I was far too weak and feeble to lift a glass.
- She looks so weak and feeble from all her depression, but there's a strength in her now that was never there before.
Synonyms
weak, weakly, weakened, puny, wasted, frail, infirm, delicate, sickly, ailing, unwell, poorly, failing, helpless, powerless, impotent, enfeebled, enervated, debilitated, incapacitated, effete
1. 1.1 (of a sound) faint.
  （声音）无力的，微弱的，不清楚的
  his voice sounded feeble and far away
  他的声音听起来很微弱而且很远。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Her voice was the volume of a hamster's adorable, feeble squeak.
  Jackson took one look at her afflicted walk, and scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her feeble cry of protest.
  A little head peeped out of the broken egg, making a feeble sound.
  With a feeble squeak, his knees buckled, and he tumbled into a wall, eyes wide with shock.
  The computer beeped and then made a feeble sound.
  It was surprising how feeble Wills's replies sounded.
  There was a distinct amount of light filtering around the blinds and, through the window, the first feeble sounds of the dawn chorus.
  We suddenly heard a feeble clang of the gate - like someone was knocking, but not very hard.
  With a feeble murmur her head drooped backward from a sudden spell of dizziness.
  The mother made me literally force-feed him, shoving puréed food into his mouth as he cried piteously in feeble protest.
  He didn't realize how much it hurt until I gave out a feeble cry.
  When asked what her strengths are she adopts a deliberately feeble voice and says, ‘I try really hard.’
  No matter how powerful and commanding your voice, it always sounds weak and feeble after loud music and graphics on a big screen, but the drama that was about to unfold really was a jarring contrast.
  Synonyms
  faint, dim, weak, pale, soft, subdued, muted, indistinct, unclear, vague
2. 1.2 Lacking strength of character.
  （性格）弱的，软弱的
  she overreacted in such a feeble, juvenile way
  她的过激反应是那么的无力和幼稚。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Until recently, the concern had been that the recovery in the euro zone was so pallid and feeble that the big euro zone economies could not take a rate increase.
  The independent counsel's unprecedented challenge to the presidency evoked the most feeble and cowardly response from these quarters.
  The limp untheatricality and stale visual aesthetic of the production are feeble responses to the elemental power and ecstatic lyricism of Wagner's score.
  And on it goes, each lame joke greeted with feeble, self-regarding applause and laughter that comes like a slow belch.
  In this time of war and destruction, a fearful thought, a threatening glance, were common and yet they still played with a weak mind or a feeble soul.
  A Nietzschean may see it as a lie with which the feeble and timid console themselves for their inability to seize life as it should be seized.
  I can't lay the blame on the police, they are just doing as they are told, and are probably as sick of the system as me, but I strongly lay it on our feeble and weak justice system today.
  So far, the Bank of England's attempts to slow the consumer boom here look to have been as feeble as placing matchsticks in the path of an oncoming train.
  Much of what constitutes educative efforts in Christian communities today is bland, feeble, and ineffectual.
  His feeble attempt to strengthen the government's image failed.
  Other performers, again, are remarkable for vivacity of action and elocution, who nevertheless are felt to be feeble and ineffective in rousing an audience to emotion.
  Janes's budget was obviously restricted, but this is no excuse for a feeble script.
  It may have been too early to celebrate a nascent political vitality that remains, for now, too feeble and limited to convince that democracy is finally within our grasp.
  To do so is a common but intellectually feeble move, itself a defence against uncomfortable reality.
  It has been known for years that the test is illogical and is a joke, but they have enough clout to be able to persuade a weak government and feeble ministers.
  Worse than the comedy, however, are the director's feeble attempts at character building.
  For a representative of a party caricatured for being rather feeble and spineless, he has been strikingly resolute throughout the crisis.
  Synonyms
  cowardly, craven, faint-hearted, spineless, spiritless, lily-livered, chicken-livered, pigeon-hearted
3. 1.3 Failing to convince or impress.
  不能给人留下印象的，不具说服力的
  a feeble excuse
  难以服人的借口。
  Example sentencesExamples
  We were always agreed, in good Augustinian fashion, that in a fallen world our best is but a faint intimation of, a feeble gesture toward, what ought to be.
  As my physics teacher wrote of my feeble efforts, years ago, ‘You can do better than this.’
  I didn't want to ask to sleep next to her because the words sounded feeble in my head, like a child was saying them.
  I could tell you that I only cry when I'm very sad or hurt, but those are feeble excuses, inadequate reasons for condoning my shameful crime.
  You'd end up writing a very pale and feeble imitation of a novel if you did that.
  Nor are they convinced by the administration's decision on Wednesday to lower the terror alert from orange to yellow, a rather feeble attempt to demonstrate the wisdom of this war.
  But was there any reason besides political correctness to produce such a feeble, boring piece in the first place?
  And journalists who are trying to get him to talk are getting a particularly feeble excuse for why he won't.
  And there always seems to be some feeble excuse or other in an attempt to defend their illicit actions, rather than admitting that most of them are just downright bad.
  But of course, we all know that this feeble rubbish is only a weak-kneed attempt to be amusing.
  However, those campaigns were no more than the feeble shouting of the weak, and did not impact the security and interests of other countries.
  The feeble excuses some people try to swing are funny.
  I don't care if it's part of underground culture or whatever other feeble excuse you've got, it's just plain rude.
  But the comedy is slack, the song lyrics feeble, the pace torpid.
  Anyway, on top of that well, I started getting these - I suppose ‘bad vibes’ is all I can describe them as, but that sounds so feeble.
  On the contrary, the arguments are vague, slippery, feeble, circular or false.
  Some of your ideas might sound feeble, even to your own ears.
  When I re-read it in later years I realized that the plot was unrealistic, the dialogue feeble and the characterization nil.
  These sound pretty feeble reasons for Tony Blair to flunk the great test of his leadership.
  It always sounds so pathetic when you refer to it, like some sort of feeble attempt to impress.
  Synonyms
  ineffective, ineffectual, unsuccessful, inadequate, unconvincing, implausible, unsatisfactory, poor, weak, inept, tame, paltry, shallow, thin, flimsy, insubstantial

Origin

Middle English: from Old French fieble, earlier fleible, from Latin flebilis ‘lamentable’, from flere ‘weep’.

词汇	feeble
释义	Definition of feeble in English: feeble adjectivefeebler, feeblest ˈfiːb(ə)lˈfibəl 1Lacking physical strength, especially as a result of age or illness. （尤指因年老或疾病而）虚弱的，衰弱的，乏力的 by now, he was too feeble to leave his room Example sentencesExamples She tried to pull it open even though she knew that there was no way it was going to come open by her feeble strength. Weak and feeble, their gray feathers were sprinkled with fine grains of white salt. Our sin makes us feeble and craven, and we long to flee from the liberty of the sons of God; but where now can we go? Britain's hold on the colonies, though, ‘was the grip of a tired and feeble old man’. Today this peerless coach lies feeble and weak wanting assistance to meet his illness. Lacking any access to the strenuous life of the outdoors, they would be physically feeble. They have already cast an evil spell over the weak and feeble King Henry. Sometimes the pills make me feel faint and feeble. He cries weakly, the effort clearly straining his feeble body. A small feeble middle aged man, wearing a white coat and glasses. Eighty-year-old Lucy is a small feeble woman, but what she lacks in physical strength, she makes up for in character. After that, I was far too weak and feeble to lift a glass. It's too easy to choose the weakest, most feeble opponent and it's usually more about your own insecurities than a real challenge to combat. Truth be told, it's great and, weak and feeble as I can be, I love it. Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one? Protagonists are helpless and feeble, benighted, physically weak and powerless. She looks so weak and feeble from all her depression, but there's a strength in her now that was never there before. Upon seeing the seemingly weak and feeble counterpart behind him, he merely turned his attention back to blocking the other two and trying to escape. Occasionally she would have a fit of coughing, her body's very feeble last attempts at expelling her illness. But I'm convinced that what it releases is just my feeble reservoir of strength. Synonyms weak, weakly, weakened, puny, wasted, frail, infirm, delicate, sickly, ailing, unwell, poorly, failing, helpless, powerless, impotent, enfeebled, enervated, debilitated, incapacitated, effete decrepit, doddering, doddery, tottering, tottery, shaky, trembling, trembly Scottish shilpit rare etiolated 1.1 (of a sound) faint. （声音）无力的，微弱的，不清楚的 her feeble cries of pain Example sentencesExamples Her voice was the volume of a hamster's adorable, feeble squeak. When asked what her strengths are she adopts a deliberately feeble voice and says, ‘I try really hard.’ With a feeble squeak, his knees buckled, and he tumbled into a wall, eyes wide with shock. The mother made me literally force-feed him, shoving puréed food into his mouth as he cried piteously in feeble protest. There was a distinct amount of light filtering around the blinds and, through the window, the first feeble sounds of the dawn chorus. No matter how powerful and commanding your voice, it always sounds weak and feeble after loud music and graphics on a big screen, but the drama that was about to unfold really was a jarring contrast. It was surprising how feeble Wills's replies sounded. We suddenly heard a feeble clang of the gate - like someone was knocking, but not very hard. The computer beeped and then made a feeble sound. A little head peeped out of the broken egg, making a feeble sound. With a feeble murmur her head drooped backward from a sudden spell of dizziness. He didn't realize how much it hurt until I gave out a feeble cry. Jackson took one look at her afflicted walk, and scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her feeble cry of protest. Synonyms faint, dim, weak, pale, soft, subdued, muted, indistinct, unclear, vague informal wishy-washy 1.2 Lacking strength of character. （性格）弱的，软弱的 I know it's feeble but I've never been one to stand up for myself Example sentencesExamples Worse than the comedy, however, are the director's feeble attempts at character building. Janes's budget was obviously restricted, but this is no excuse for a feeble script. To do so is a common but intellectually feeble move, itself a defence against uncomfortable reality. The limp untheatricality and stale visual aesthetic of the production are feeble responses to the elemental power and ecstatic lyricism of Wagner's score. It has been known for years that the test is illogical and is a joke, but they have enough clout to be able to persuade a weak government and feeble ministers. Other performers, again, are remarkable for vivacity of action and elocution, who nevertheless are felt to be feeble and ineffective in rousing an audience to emotion. Until recently, the concern had been that the recovery in the euro zone was so pallid and feeble that the big euro zone economies could not take a rate increase. A Nietzschean may see it as a lie with which the feeble and timid console themselves for their inability to seize life as it should be seized. Much of what constitutes educative efforts in Christian communities today is bland, feeble, and ineffectual. In this time of war and destruction, a fearful thought, a threatening glance, were common and yet they still played with a weak mind or a feeble soul. His feeble attempt to strengthen the government's image failed. And on it goes, each lame joke greeted with feeble, self-regarding applause and laughter that comes like a slow belch. So far, the Bank of England's attempts to slow the consumer boom here look to have been as feeble as placing matchsticks in the path of an oncoming train. For a representative of a party caricatured for being rather feeble and spineless, he has been strikingly resolute throughout the crisis. I can't lay the blame on the police, they are just doing as they are told, and are probably as sick of the system as me, but I strongly lay it on our feeble and weak justice system today. The independent counsel's unprecedented challenge to the presidency evoked the most feeble and cowardly response from these quarters. It may have been too early to celebrate a nascent political vitality that remains, for now, too feeble and limited to convince that democracy is finally within our grasp. Synonyms cowardly, craven, faint-hearted, spineless, spiritless, lily-livered, chicken-livered, pigeon-hearted timid, timorous, fearful, unassertive, soft, weak, ineffective, ineffectual, inefficient, incompetent, inadequate, indecisive informal wishy-washy, wimpy, sissy, sissified, gutless, weak-kneed, yellow, yellow-bellied, chicken British informal wet North American informal candy-assed North American vulgar slang chickenshit archaic poor-spirited 1.3 Failing to convince or impress. 不能给人留下印象的，不具说服力的 a feeble excuse 难以服人的借口。 Example sentencesExamples And journalists who are trying to get him to talk are getting a particularly feeble excuse for why he won't. Some of your ideas might sound feeble, even to your own ears. I don't care if it's part of underground culture or whatever other feeble excuse you've got, it's just plain rude. I didn't want to ask to sleep next to her because the words sounded feeble in my head, like a child was saying them. As my physics teacher wrote of my feeble efforts, years ago, ‘You can do better than this.’ It always sounds so pathetic when you refer to it, like some sort of feeble attempt to impress. These sound pretty feeble reasons for Tony Blair to flunk the great test of his leadership. Nor are they convinced by the administration's decision on Wednesday to lower the terror alert from orange to yellow, a rather feeble attempt to demonstrate the wisdom of this war. When I re-read it in later years I realized that the plot was unrealistic, the dialogue feeble and the characterization nil. I could tell you that I only cry when I'm very sad or hurt, but those are feeble excuses, inadequate reasons for condoning my shameful crime. The feeble excuses some people try to swing are funny. But the comedy is slack, the song lyrics feeble, the pace torpid. We were always agreed, in good Augustinian fashion, that in a fallen world our best is but a faint intimation of, a feeble gesture toward, what ought to be. You'd end up writing a very pale and feeble imitation of a novel if you did that. And there always seems to be some feeble excuse or other in an attempt to defend their illicit actions, rather than admitting that most of them are just downright bad. However, those campaigns were no more than the feeble shouting of the weak, and did not impact the security and interests of other countries. On the contrary, the arguments are vague, slippery, feeble, circular or false. Anyway, on top of that well, I started getting these - I suppose ‘bad vibes’ is all I can describe them as, but that sounds so feeble. But was there any reason besides political correctness to produce such a feeble, boring piece in the first place? But of course, we all know that this feeble rubbish is only a weak-kneed attempt to be amusing. Synonyms ineffective, ineffectual, unsuccessful, inadequate, unconvincing, implausible, unsatisfactory, poor, weak, inept, tame, paltry, shallow, thin, flimsy, insubstantial futile, useless, profitless, fruitless Derivatives feebleness noun ˈfiːb(ə)lnəs I detected a certain feebleness of insight in these pieces. Example sentencesExamples That, to me, would be tantamount to moral feebleness - and it would, in any case, fail in its aim. And, as always, our spirits rose after initial feebleness. The more important point, however, is that (to me at least) one of the measures of national power and greatness is the ability to suffer the insecurities and feebleness of weaker powers with a measure of grace. What puzzles me is the feebleness of the argument. Origin Middle English: from Old French fieble, earlier fleible, from Latin flebilis 'lamentable', from flere 'weep'. This word is from Old French fieble, which was earlier spelt fleible, from Latin flebilis ‘lamentable’ from flere ‘to weep’. Rhymes enfeeble, Keble Definition of feeble in US English: feeble adjectiveˈfēbəlˈfibəl 1Lacking physical strength, especially as a result of age or illness. （尤指因年老或疾病而）虚弱的，衰弱的，乏力的 my legs are very feeble after the flu 患了流感之后，我的两条腿软弱无力。 Example sentencesExamples He cries weakly, the effort clearly straining his feeble body. It's too easy to choose the weakest, most feeble opponent and it's usually more about your own insecurities than a real challenge to combat. She tried to pull it open even though she knew that there was no way it was going to come open by her feeble strength. A small feeble middle aged man, wearing a white coat and glasses. Britain's hold on the colonies, though, ‘was the grip of a tired and feeble old man’. Occasionally she would have a fit of coughing, her body's very feeble last attempts at expelling her illness. Truth be told, it's great and, weak and feeble as I can be, I love it. Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one? But I'm convinced that what it releases is just my feeble reservoir of strength. Sometimes the pills make me feel faint and feeble. Our sin makes us feeble and craven, and we long to flee from the liberty of the sons of God; but where now can we go? Lacking any access to the strenuous life of the outdoors, they would be physically feeble. Upon seeing the seemingly weak and feeble counterpart behind him, he merely turned his attention back to blocking the other two and trying to escape. Weak and feeble, their gray feathers were sprinkled with fine grains of white salt. Protagonists are helpless and feeble, benighted, physically weak and powerless. They have already cast an evil spell over the weak and feeble King Henry. Today this peerless coach lies feeble and weak wanting assistance to meet his illness. Eighty-year-old Lucy is a small feeble woman, but what she lacks in physical strength, she makes up for in character. After that, I was far too weak and feeble to lift a glass. She looks so weak and feeble from all her depression, but there's a strength in her now that was never there before. Synonyms weak, weakly, weakened, puny, wasted, frail, infirm, delicate, sickly, ailing, unwell, poorly, failing, helpless, powerless, impotent, enfeebled, enervated, debilitated, incapacitated, effete 1.1 (of a sound) faint. （声音）无力的，微弱的，不清楚的 his voice sounded feeble and far away 他的声音听起来很微弱而且很远。 Example sentencesExamples Her voice was the volume of a hamster's adorable, feeble squeak. Jackson took one look at her afflicted walk, and scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her feeble cry of protest. A little head peeped out of the broken egg, making a feeble sound. With a feeble squeak, his knees buckled, and he tumbled into a wall, eyes wide with shock. The computer beeped and then made a feeble sound. It was surprising how feeble Wills's replies sounded. There was a distinct amount of light filtering around the blinds and, through the window, the first feeble sounds of the dawn chorus. We suddenly heard a feeble clang of the gate - like someone was knocking, but not very hard. With a feeble murmur her head drooped backward from a sudden spell of dizziness. The mother made me literally force-feed him, shoving puréed food into his mouth as he cried piteously in feeble protest. He didn't realize how much it hurt until I gave out a feeble cry. When asked what her strengths are she adopts a deliberately feeble voice and says, ‘I try really hard.’ No matter how powerful and commanding your voice, it always sounds weak and feeble after loud music and graphics on a big screen, but the drama that was about to unfold really was a jarring contrast. Synonyms faint, dim, weak, pale, soft, subdued, muted, indistinct, unclear, vague 1.2 Lacking strength of character. （性格）弱的，软弱的 she overreacted in such a feeble, juvenile way 她的过激反应是那么的无力和幼稚。 Example sentencesExamples Until recently, the concern had been that the recovery in the euro zone was so pallid and feeble that the big euro zone economies could not take a rate increase. The independent counsel's unprecedented challenge to the presidency evoked the most feeble and cowardly response from these quarters. The limp untheatricality and stale visual aesthetic of the production are feeble responses to the elemental power and ecstatic lyricism of Wagner's score. And on it goes, each lame joke greeted with feeble, self-regarding applause and laughter that comes like a slow belch. In this time of war and destruction, a fearful thought, a threatening glance, were common and yet they still played with a weak mind or a feeble soul. A Nietzschean may see it as a lie with which the feeble and timid console themselves for their inability to seize life as it should be seized. I can't lay the blame on the police, they are just doing as they are told, and are probably as sick of the system as me, but I strongly lay it on our feeble and weak justice system today. So far, the Bank of England's attempts to slow the consumer boom here look to have been as feeble as placing matchsticks in the path of an oncoming train. Much of what constitutes educative efforts in Christian communities today is bland, feeble, and ineffectual. His feeble attempt to strengthen the government's image failed. Other performers, again, are remarkable for vivacity of action and elocution, who nevertheless are felt to be feeble and ineffective in rousing an audience to emotion. Janes's budget was obviously restricted, but this is no excuse for a feeble script. It may have been too early to celebrate a nascent political vitality that remains, for now, too feeble and limited to convince that democracy is finally within our grasp. To do so is a common but intellectually feeble move, itself a defence against uncomfortable reality. It has been known for years that the test is illogical and is a joke, but they have enough clout to be able to persuade a weak government and feeble ministers. Worse than the comedy, however, are the director's feeble attempts at character building. For a representative of a party caricatured for being rather feeble and spineless, he has been strikingly resolute throughout the crisis. Synonyms cowardly, craven, faint-hearted, spineless, spiritless, lily-livered, chicken-livered, pigeon-hearted 1.3 Failing to convince or impress. 不能给人留下印象的，不具说服力的 a feeble excuse 难以服人的借口。 Example sentencesExamples We were always agreed, in good Augustinian fashion, that in a fallen world our best is but a faint intimation of, a feeble gesture toward, what ought to be. As my physics teacher wrote of my feeble efforts, years ago, ‘You can do better than this.’ I didn't want to ask to sleep next to her because the words sounded feeble in my head, like a child was saying them. I could tell you that I only cry when I'm very sad or hurt, but those are feeble excuses, inadequate reasons for condoning my shameful crime. You'd end up writing a very pale and feeble imitation of a novel if you did that. Nor are they convinced by the administration's decision on Wednesday to lower the terror alert from orange to yellow, a rather feeble attempt to demonstrate the wisdom of this war. But was there any reason besides political correctness to produce such a feeble, boring piece in the first place? And journalists who are trying to get him to talk are getting a particularly feeble excuse for why he won't. And there always seems to be some feeble excuse or other in an attempt to defend their illicit actions, rather than admitting that most of them are just downright bad. But of course, we all know that this feeble rubbish is only a weak-kneed attempt to be amusing. However, those campaigns were no more than the feeble shouting of the weak, and did not impact the security and interests of other countries. The feeble excuses some people try to swing are funny. I don't care if it's part of underground culture or whatever other feeble excuse you've got, it's just plain rude. But the comedy is slack, the song lyrics feeble, the pace torpid. Anyway, on top of that well, I started getting these - I suppose ‘bad vibes’ is all I can describe them as, but that sounds so feeble. On the contrary, the arguments are vague, slippery, feeble, circular or false. Some of your ideas might sound feeble, even to your own ears. When I re-read it in later years I realized that the plot was unrealistic, the dialogue feeble and the characterization nil. These sound pretty feeble reasons for Tony Blair to flunk the great test of his leadership. It always sounds so pathetic when you refer to it, like some sort of feeble attempt to impress. Synonyms ineffective, ineffectual, unsuccessful, inadequate, unconvincing, implausible, unsatisfactory, poor, weak, inept, tame, paltry, shallow, thin, flimsy, insubstantial Origin Middle English: from Old French fieble, earlier fleible, from Latin flebilis ‘lamentable’, from flere ‘weep’.
随便看	Modernismo modernist modernist modernista modernistic modernistic modernistic modernistically modernists modernities modernity modernity modernizable modernization modernization theory modernize modernized modernizer modernizer modernizers modernizes modernizing modern jazz modern language modern Latin