Weak — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective /ˈwēk/

Meaning & Definition of Weak

Weak (adjective)

  1. lacking strength
  2. deficient in physical vigor, feeble, debilitated
  3. not able to sustain or exert much weight, pressure, or strain

Weak (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. lacking bodily strength

    "the little boy was simply too weak to lift the box"

    similar: asthenic, debilitated, delicate, down-and-out, effete, enervated, enfeebled, faint, feeble, frail, infirm, languid, low, prostrate, prostrated, sapped, slight, soft, softened, tender, unsubstantial, wasted, weakened, wimpish, wimpy
    related: disabled, incapacitated, invalid, paralyzed, broken-down, decrepit, impotent, powerless, breakable, flimsy, fragile, dizzy, groggy, rocky, unsteady, woozy, drained, exhausted, flagging, tired, weary, worn-out, damaged, harmed, hurt, impaired, injured, unsound, resistless, susceptible, unresistant, vulnerable, yielding
    opposite: mighty, powerful, rugged, stalwart, stout, strong
    near: able-bodied, athletic, beefy, brawny, fit, husky, muscular, sinewy, strapping, virile, hard, hardy, lusty, red-blooded, robust, sturdy, tough, fortified, hardened, inured, strengthened, toughened, energetic, energized, invigorated, vigorous, vitalized, hale, healthy, sound, capable, competent, convalescing, recovering, recuperating

  2. lacking strength of will or character

    "I was too weak to resist the free doughnuts in the office break room"

    similar: characterless, effete, frail, invertebrate, limp-wristed, milk-and-water, namby-pamby, nerveless, soft, spineless, weakened, weak-kneed, weakling, wet (British), wimpish, wimpy, wishy-washy
    related: flabby, flaccid, forceless, ineffective, ineffectual, impotent, impuissant, powerless, emasculated, unnerved, lamblike, meek, pliable, submissive, corrupt, dastardly, unprincipled, unscrupulous, villainous, cowardly, craven, fainthearted, lily-livered, nebbishy, poltroon, pusillanimous, sissy, timid, infirm, irresolute, vacillating
    opposite: backboned, firm, hard, strong, tough
    near: ethical, good, moral, principled, right, righteous, upright, virtuous, determined, mettlesome, resolute, unrelenting, courageous, stalwart, stouthearted

  3. not containing very much of some important element

    "the coffee came out too weak because I didn't use enough ground beans"

    similar: dilute, diluted, thin, thinned, washy, watery, weakened
    related: adulterated, watered-down
    opposite: full-bodied, rich, strong
    near: enriched, fortified, concentrated, condensed, evaporated

  4. not using or following good reasoning

    "your argument is weak"

    similar: fallacious, illegitimate, illogical, inconsequent, inconsequential, invalid, irrational, nonrational, unreasonable, unreasoning, unsound
    related: eristic, misleading, sophistic, specious, half-baked, ill-advised, misguided, unconsidered, unreasoned, inconsistent, absurd, asinine, foolish, meaningless, nonsensical, preposterous, reasonless, senseless, silly, Kafkaesque, odd, peculiar, strange, surreal, unusual, weird, insane, mad, nutty, wacky, disordered, disorganized, rambling, random, unconvincing, inexplicable, unaccountable, unexplainable
    opposite: logical, rational, reasonable, sound, valid, well-founded, well-grounded
    near: commonsense, sane, sensible, sober, wise, enlightened, informed, just, justified, reasoned, ordered, organized, clear, cogent, compelling, convincing, credible, persuasive, plausible, satisfying, solid, certain, sure, true, confirmed, corroborated, demonstrated, established, substantiated, validated

  5. unable to act or achieve one's purpose

    "the vice president is a relatively weak official"

    similar: hamstrung, handcuffed, helpless, high and dry, hog-tied, impotent, impuissant, paralyzed, powerless
    related: incapable, incompetent, ineffective, ineffectual, inept, unfit, useless, feeble, frail, infirm, passive, spineless, supine, unaggressive
    opposite: mighty, potent, powerful, puissant, strong
    near: able, capable, competent, effective, efficient, authoritarian, autocratic, despotic, dictatorial, magisterial, tyrannical, dominant, dynamic, energetic, forceful, robust, sturdy, tough, vigorous, important, major, significant, high-level, senior, top

Related Entry: Weak-kneed (adjective)

Weak-kneed is a different word from Weak. The synonyms below are for weak-kneed, not for weak.

  1. lacking strength of will or character

    "management is too weak-kneed to effectively enforce even a minimal dress code"

    similar: characterless, effete, frail, invertebrate, limp-wristed, milk-and-water, namby-pamby, nerveless, soft, spineless, weak, weakened, weakling, wet (British), wimpish, wimpy, wishy-washy
    related: flabby, flaccid, forceless, ineffective, ineffectual, impotent, impuissant, powerless, emasculated, unnerved, lamblike, meek, pliable, submissive, corrupt, dastardly, unprincipled, unscrupulous, villainous, cowardly, craven, fainthearted, lily-livered, nebbishy, poltroon, pusillanimous, sissy, timid, infirm, irresolute, vacillating
    opposite: backboned, firm, hard, strong, tough
    near: ethical, good, moral, principled, right, righteous, upright, virtuous, determined, mettlesome, resolute, unrelenting, courageous, stalwart, stouthearted

Related Entry: Weak-minded (adjective)

Weak-minded is a different word from Weak. The synonyms below are for weak-minded, not for weak.

  1. not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily

    "I felt a little weak-minded at the beginning of the semester but eventually the class was a breeze"

    similar: airheaded, birdbrained, bonehead, boneheaded, brain-dead, brainless, bubbleheaded, chuckleheaded, dense, dim, dim-witted, doltish, dopey, dorky (slang), dull, dumb, dunderheaded, empty-headed, fatuous, gormless (chiefly British), half-witted, knuckleheaded, lamebrain, lunkheaded, mindless, oafish, obtuse, opaque, pinheaded, senseless, simple, slow, slow-witted, soft, softheaded, stupid, thick, thick-witted, thickheaded, unintelligent, unsmart, vacuous, witless
    related: cretinous, feebleminded, simpleminded, boobish, foolish, idiotic, imbecile, moronic, ignorant, illiterate, lowbrow, uneducated, uninformed, unintellectual, untaught, unthinking, absurd, asinine, balmy, cockeyed, crackpot, crazy, cuckoo, daffy, daft, dippy, dotty, featherheaded, fool, half-baked, harebrained, insane, kooky, loony, mad, nonsensical, nutty, preposterous, sappy, screwball, silly, tomfool, unwise, wacky, zany, fallacious, illogical, invalid, irrational, unreasonable
    opposite: apt, brainy, bright, brilliant, clever, fast, hyperintelligent, intelligent, keen, nimble, quick, quick-witted, sharp, sharp-witted, smart, supersmart, ultrasmart
    near: ingenious, resourceful, acute, astute, discerning, insightful, keen, knowing, perceptive, percipient, perspicacious, sagacious, sage, sapient, savvy, wise, cerebral, erudite, highbrow, intellectual, knowledgeable, learned, literate, scholarly, thinking, well-read, educated, informed, schooled, skilled, trained, crafty, cunning, foxy, shrewd, wily, judicious, prudent, sane, sensible, sound, logical, rational, reasonable, valid

  2. showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment

    "a weak-minded decision to use all of their savings to buy lottery tickets in the hopes of hitting the jackpot"

    similar: absurd, asinine, balmy, barmy (chiefly British), batty, brainless, bubbleheaded, cockeyed, crackbrained, crackpot, crazy, cuckoo, daffy, daft, dippy, dotty, fatuous, featherheaded, fool, foolish, fruity (slang), gaga, half-baked, half-witted, harebrained, inept, insane, jerky, kooky, loony, loony tunes, lunatic (informal), lunkheaded, mad, meshuga, nonsensical, nutty, preposterous, sappy, screwball, senseless, silly, simpleminded, stupid, tomfool, unwise, wacko, wacky, witless, zany, out to lunch
    related: airheaded, birdbrained, boobish, brain-dead, chowderheaded, chuckleheaded, clueless, dense, dim, dim-witted, doltish, dopey, dorky (slang), dull, dumb, dunderheaded, empty-headed, feebleminded, gormless (chiefly British), idiotic, imbecile, knuckleheaded, lamebrain, mindless, moronic, oafish, obtuse, opaque, pinheaded, simple, slow, slow-witted, soft, softheaded, thoughtless, thick, thickheaded, unintelligent, vacuous, fallacious, illogical, invalid, irrational, nonrational, surd, unreasonable, unreasoning, unsound, weak, farcical, laughable, ludicrous, ridiculous, notional, buffoonish, clownish, ill-advised, unconsidered, unreasoned
    opposite: judicious, prudent, sagacious, sage, sane, sapient, sensible, sound, wise
    near: brainy, bright, clever, intelligent, smart, logical, rational, reasonable, valid, well-advised

Related Entry: Weak-mindedness (noun)

Weak-mindedness is a different word from Weak. The synonyms below are for weak-mindedness, not for weak.

  1. the quality or state of lacking intelligence or quickness of mind

    "though the dog that the family took in was friendly and loyal, his weak-mindedness made him quite difficult to train"

    similar: boneheadedness, brainlessness, denseness, density, dim-wittedness, doltishness, dopiness, dorkiness, dullness, dumbness, fatuity, foolishness, gormlessness (chiefly British), mindlessness, oafishness, obtuseness, senselessness, simpleness, slowness, stupidity, stupidness, thickness, vacuity, witlessness
    related: feeblemindedness, simplemindedness, absurdity, asininity, balminess, craziness, daftness, dippiness, dottiness, fatuousness, folly, idiocy, inaneness, inanity, insanity, lunacy, madness, nincompoopery, nonsensicalness, nuttiness, preposterousness, silliness, simplicity, wackiness, zaniness, fallacy, irrationality, unreasonableness
    opposite: braininess, brightness, brilliance, cleverness, intelligence, keenness, quickness, quick-wittedness, sharpness, smartness
    near: acumen, alertness, astuteness, discernment, insight, judgment, perception, percipience, perspicacity, sagacity, sageness, sapience, wisdom, wit, logicality, logicalness, rationality, rationalness, reasonableness, soundness, validity

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Weak

The most common words with a similar meaning to Weak:

British: wet
asthenic, debilitated, delicate, down-and-out, effete, enervated, enfeebled, faint, feeble, frail, infirm, languid, low, prostrate, prostrated, sapped, slight, soft, softened, tender, unsubstantial, wasted, weakened, wimpish, wimpy, characterless, invertebrate, limp-wristed, milk-and-water, namby-pamby, nerveless, spineless, weak-kneed, weakling, wishy-washy, dilute, diluted, thin, thinned, washy

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Weak

Words with the opposite meaning of Weak:

mighty, powerful, rugged, stalwart, stout, strong, backboned, firm, hard, tough, full-bodied, rich, logical, rational, reasonable, sound, valid, well-founded, well-grounded, potent, puissant

Related Words for Weak

disabled, incapacitated, broken-down, decrepit, breakable, flimsy, fragile, dizzy, groggy, rocky, unsteady, woozy, drained, exhausted, flagging, tired, weary, worn-out, damaged, harmed, hurt, impaired, injured, resistless, susceptible, unresistant, vulnerable, yielding, flabby, flaccid

Near Antonyms of Weak

able-bodied, athletic, beefy, brawny, fit, husky, muscular, sinewy, strapping, virile, hardy, lusty, red-blooded, robust, sturdy, fortified, hardened, inured, strengthened, toughened, energetic, energized, invigorated, vigorous, vitalized, hale, healthy, capable, competent, convalescing

Word Forms of Weak

Inflections: weaker, weakest

Derived words: weakly (adverb)

Origin & Etymology of Weak

Middle English weike, from Old Norse veikr; akin to Old English wīcan to yield, Greek eikein to give way, Sanskrit vijate he speeds, flees

First known use: 14th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Weak

Words & Phrases Containing Weak

weak anthropic principle, weak force, weak-kneed, weak-minded, weak sauce, weak side, weak sister, weak at/in the knees, weak link

Frequently Asked Questions about Weak

What does "Weak" mean?

"Weak" means lacking strength. As an adjective, it is defined as: lacking strength. It has 5 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Weak"?

Other words for "Weak" include asthenic, debilitated, delicate, down-and-out, effete, enervated, enfeebled and faint. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Weak" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Weak"?

There are 165 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Weak". Common alternatives include asthenic, debilitated, delicate, down-and-out, effete, enervated, enfeebled, faint, feeble and frail.

What is the opposite of "Weak"?

Antonyms of "Weak" include mighty, powerful, rugged, stalwart, stout, strong, backboned and firm. Near antonyms include able-bodied, athletic, beefy and brawny.

How do you use "Weak" in a sentence?

Examples of "Weak" in a sentence: "the little boy was simply too weak to lift the box"; "I was too weak to resist the free doughnuts in the office break room"; "the coffee came out too weak because I didn't use enough ground beans".

Is "Weak" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Weak" is an adjective.

Is "Weak" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A2-level word, "Weak" is typical of Cambridge A2 Key (KET), PTE Academic 30–42, TOEIC Listening & Reading 225+.

How do you pronounce "Weak"?

"Weak" is pronounced /ˈwēk/.