How to Use brittle in a Sentence

brittle

1 of 2 adjective
  • But even then, their strength is brittle.
    — John Hope Bryant, Time, 6 Sep. 2025
  • The leaves feel warm but are not brittle and dry.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 20 June 2026
  • Hair can be frizzy or smooth, brittle or strong.
    — Cory Martin, Verywell Health, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Like fudge, caramel corn, brittle.
    — Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 9 Dec. 2025
  • The leaves feel warm to the touch but are not dry and brittle.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 20 June 2026
  • Grass blades are more fragile and brittle in the cold.
    — Lauren David, Southern Living, 19 Oct. 2025
  • But there is nothing brittle about him.
    — Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2026
  • The wood will also be more brittle.
    — Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026
  • The wind remained strong and the ground brittle.
    — Arkansas Online, 2 Feb. 2026
  • The bread should feel pliable, not brittle.
    — Olivia McIntosh, Martha Stewart, 4 Apr. 2026
  • The mood was brittle and unsure.
    — Sam Knight, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
  • Its bounce sets it apart from cookies, which tend to be brittle, short, or chewy.
    — Ruby Tandoh, The New Yorker, 7 Aug. 2022
  • If your hair is on the dry or brittle side, a little olive oil may go a long way.
    — Danielle Blundell, Women's Health, 20 Feb. 2023
  • Even brittle and stagnating regimes can hold on for a long time.
    — Mark Galeotti, CNN, 11 Nov. 2022
  • All along the road, trees raised their scrawny hands, white-knuckled against the brittle sky.
    — Literary Hub, 14 Apr. 2026
  • This makes planning more brittle.
    — Sophia Chu, Sourcing Journal, 22 Jan. 2026
  • Grass blades with frost on them are brittle and can be damaged by mowing.
    — David Beaulieu, The Spruce, 23 June 2026
  • My hair is healthier and shinier, and my nails are less brittle.
    — Arden Fanning Andrews, Vogue, 17 Nov. 2023
  • As a result, damaged hair is very dry and very brittle.
    — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 21 Aug. 2025
  • Then, of course, there are the signs of his own brittle integrity.
    — Frida Ghitis, CNN, 26 Jan. 2023
  • The product can damage wool fibers and leave them brittle.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 31 Dec. 2025
  • Cold weather can make rubber hoses stiff and brittle.
    — Charles Singh, USA Today, 27 Feb. 2026
  • The taffy was brittle, and clerks behind the counter broke it to size with a hammer.
    — Jacques Kelly, Baltimore Sun, 1 Nov. 2022
  • Despite its name, metallic glass is not brittle and can be stronger than steel.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 10 Mar. 2026
  • Not tough, not brittle—sitting in that Goldilocks range of crispy meets chewy.
    — Sam Stone, Bon Appétit, 8 Feb. 2024
  • There are hair oils that can solve issues such as dry, brittle, broken or split ends.
    — Dallas News, 30 Nov. 2022
  • Put the rosemary in the oven for two to four hours or until the sprigs are dry and brittle.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 9 June 2026
  • Put the rosemary in the oven for two to four hours or until the sprigs are dry and brittle.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 2 Mar. 2026
  • The wood of sequoias is considered brittle, and few logs made it to the mill.
    — Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 20 Sep. 2025
  • In addition, a dry scalp will lead to dry, brittle and fragile hair.
    — Dallas News, 30 Nov. 2022

brittle

2 of 2 noun
  • The butter in the recipe will keep the brittle from sticking.
    — Anna Caplan, Dallas News, 18 Dec. 2020
  • Peele thought the brittle had an odd aftertaste of spice and smoke.
    — Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 26 Sep. 2021
  • Vietnamese caramel and pine nut brittle joined a succulent chunk of seabass in the fifth course.
    — Domenica Bongiovanni, Indianapolis Star, 19 Mar. 2018
  • The finished brittle will snap versus having a chewy texture that can stick to your teeth.
    — Sydney Novak, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Dec. 2021
  • Fan favorites The most addictive is the brittles, the cashew and peanut.
    — Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 30 Jan. 2020
  • Your brittle, agèd skull and fragile brain matter are also many, many more feet above the pavement now.
    — Emma Brewer, The New Yorker, 22 June 2021
  • Cookie brittle may be the next trend, with even Betty Crocker on board.
    — Anna Caplan, Dallas News, 18 Dec. 2020
  • That includes roasted nuts, toffees, nougats, brittles, fondants, even old-fashioned opera creams and ice cream.
    — Kristine M. Kierzek, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 8 Dec. 2017
  • This bar of ruby cacao swirls in cocoa nibs from regular chocolate that have been made into a sweet brittle.
    — Magdalena O'Neal, Sunset Magazine, 21 Jan. 2022
  • Pistachios Iran is known the world over for its pistachios, which are used in ice creams, brittles, halva, and more.
    — Andy Baraghani, Bon Appetit, 16 Mar. 2017
  • For that brittle, glassy sugar topping, a mini blowtorch is your friend—and a worthy investment.
    — Ashley Dunne, Sunset Magazine, 28 Apr. 2022
  • Prewar buildings can be nearly bombproof, but their cast-iron sewers are full of corrosion, their brass plumbing brittle and cracked.
    — Burkhard Bilger, The New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2020
  • Aromas of mandarins, some honeydew melon, cherries and slight mint brittle.
    — Tom Mullen, Forbes, 31 July 2022
  • The perfect pairing for his after-hours drink, this buttery brittle is made with cocoa beans roasted in aged bourbon barrels.
    — Amanda Garrity, Good Housekeeping, 4 Jan. 2023
  • And the strawberry jam is a bright visual complement to the black brittle that is also a sweet, fresh addition to the vanilla soft serve.
    — oregonlive, 15 Aug. 2022
  • Bridge vaults overhead, as if extending a muscular arm over the brittle-looking buildings below.
    — Curbed, 25 Feb. 2022
  • The brittle adds crunch and a slightly bitter flavor that pleasantly offsets the slightly sweet ruby cacao.
    — Magdalena O'Neal, Sunset Magazine, 21 Jan. 2022
  • Add brittle and chocolate to dough; beat on low speed just until incorporated, about 10 seconds.
    — People Staff, Peoplemag, 2 Dec. 2022
  • Another popular choice is Peanut Brittle, a subtle peanut butter ice cream topped with a crunchy, sweet brittle.
    — oregonlive, 17 Mar. 2022
  • This causes bones to become weaker and brittle, which often leads to conditions such as osteoarthritis and osteoporosis.
    — Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 4 Apr. 2022
  • Pass Mountain Trail seems to be the star this year with a range of blooms that include poppies, lupines, brittles, fiddleneck, cinchweed, chuparosa and asters.
    — Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 21 Feb. 2026
  • Chipping your tooth on peanut brittle, getting a hitch in your get-a-long, or having your mother-in-law visit for the third time in one month are all legitimate reasons to have your heart sincerely blessed.
    — Leslie Anne Tarabella, AL.com, 10 Apr. 2018
  • The cola brittle is a play on the African American tradition of dropping a handful of peanuts into fizzy bottles of Coca Cola.
    — Lyndsay C. Green, Detroit Free Press, 26 Apr. 2022
  • The wildflower medley along Palo Verde often includes a supporting cast of fairy duster, blue phacelia, evening primrose, yellow throat gilia and cream cups, to go along with the poppies, lupines and brittles.
    — Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 21 Feb. 2026
  • In the Hualapai Mountains in Arizona, officials ordered the evacuation this week of 200 homes as screeching winds propelled flames through forests of brittle-dry pines.
    — New York Times, 30 Apr. 2021
  • Smitten Kitchen Everyday, by the award-winning blogger Deb Perelman, spans such clever, crowd-pleasing recipes as two-ingredient oat brittle, leek-and-feta savory pie, and pretzel linzer cookies.
    — Emily Saladino, USA TODAY, 21 Dec. 2017
  • Ovid, assuming a brittle, Noël Coward-ish pose of erotic sophistication, used the form to gleefully dispense his wisdom on seduction, complete with hints about where men could hunt for women (porticoes, theatres, the tail end of parades).
    — Daniel Mendelsohn, The New Yorker, 7 Nov. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'brittle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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