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Glite Dictionary
💔 Easily broken 🖥️ Easily fails
brittleness

brittleness

7.1
A system or plan that stops working after small changes
  • noun
  • /ˈbrɪtlnəs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : fragilidad
  • The tragic division of the Palestinians into a "Hamastan" in Gaza and a "Fatahstan" in the West Bank is only one expression of the nation's splintered politics and institutional brittleness.

But that's the the brittleness of a lot of our utility systems.

Examples

  • Engineers are studying the brittleness of the system to improve its stability under changing conditions.

  • But that's the the brittleness of a lot of our utility systems.

    Shawn Ryan Show

  • But it did not adapt successfully to other hospitals or regions, indicating the brittleness of some systems when they are separated from their original developers.

    Academic text (2017)

  • As the system loses resilience, it develops "brittleness" and becomes less able to cope with interruptions in inputs to the system.

    Blog text (32)

  • The brittleness of the software caused it to crash when faced with unexpected user input.

  • Many organizations struggle with the brittleness of their policies when they are tested by real-world challenges.

Synonyms

fragility
vsbrittleness
17 5.2

Something that is easy to break or damage, like glass

is about failure when small changes or unexpected inputs break system robustness
frangibleness
vsbrittleness
9.9

The quality of being easily broken or damaged

is about loss of system function from minor changes or odd inputs
frangibility
vsbrittleness
9.9

The ability of something to break easily

is about systems failing from small changes rather than from force
breakability
vsbrittleness
5.8

How easily something breaks or gets damaged

is focused on failing under slight changes or unusual conditions in systems
breakableness
vsbrittleness
9.2

How easily something is damaged or comes apart when dropped

is about poor robustness when small inputs or changes cause failure

Antonyms

stability
363 3.1

Being steady and not likely to change

robustness
2 5.5

Strength and health that help a person or thing withstand hard conditions

How Brittle

brittleness
  • Specialized
7.1
fragility
17 5.2
stability
363 3.1
resilience
52 4.8
robustness
  • Specialized
1 6.3

Surface Forms

brittleness singular
brittlenesses plural

Morphology

brittleness = brittle (semi-transparent) = brittle + ness

Formally a nominalization of 'brittle' but used metaphorically for systems and plans, so the extension is predictable yet not strictly literal.

Etymology

The word brittleness is also used for plans, machines, or models that 'break' under small changes, like a chain that snaps if one link fails. That's why calling a system brittle means it will fail or perform poorly when conditions change.