brotel

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Middle English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Old English *brotul.

Adjective[edit]

brotel

  1. Fragile, brittle, easily broken.
  2. Easily hurt or destroyed, feeble.
  3. Changeable, mutable; precarious, uncertain.
    • late 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Merchant's Tale, The Canterbury Tales, line 1279-1280:
      [...] On brotel ground they builde, and brotelnesse
      They finde, whan they wene sikernesse.
      [...] On brittle ground they build, and insecurity
      They find when they expect security.
  4. Morally weak, fickle, vacillating, untrustworthy.

Related terms[edit]

Descendants[edit]

  • English: brottle, bruttle, brattle (dialectal)

References[edit]