Weak \Weak\ (w[=e]k), a. [Compar. Weaker (-[~e]r); superl.
Weakest.]
[OE. weik, Icel. veikr; akin to Sw. vek, Dan. veg
soft, flexible, pliant, AS. w[=a]c weak, soft, pliant, D.
week, G. weich, OHG. weih; all from the verb seen in Icel.
v[=i]kja to turn, veer, recede, AS. w[=i]can to yield, give
way, G. weichen, OHG. w[=i]hhan, akin to Skr. vij, and
probably to E. week, L. vicis a change, turn, Gr. e'i`kein to
yield, give way. [root]132. Cf. Week, Wink, v. i.
Vicissitude.]
1. Wanting physical strength. Specifically:
(a) Deficient in strength of body; feeble; infirm; sickly;
debilitated; enfeebled; exhausted.
A poor, infirm, weak, and despised old man.
--Shak.
Weak with hunger, mad with love. --Dryden.
(b) Not able to sustain a great weight, pressure, or
strain; as, a weak timber; a weak rope.
(c) Not firmly united or adhesive; easily broken or
separated into pieces; not compact; as, a weak ship.
(d) Not stiff; pliant; frail; soft; as, the weak stalk of
a plant.
(e) Not able to resist external force or onset; easily
subdued or overcome; as, a weak barrier; as, a weak
fortress.
(f) Lacking force of utterance or sound; not sonorous;
low; small; feeble; faint.
A voice not soft, weak, piping, and womanish.
--Ascham.
(g) Not thoroughly or abundantly impregnated with the
usual or required ingredients, or with stimulating and
nourishing substances; of less than the usual
strength; as, weak tea, broth, or liquor; a weak
decoction or solution; a weak dose of medicine.
(h) Lacking ability for an appropriate function or office;
as, weak eyes; a weak stomach; a weak magistrate; a
weak regiment, or army.
2. Not possessing or manifesting intellectual, logical,
moral, or political strength, vigor, etc. Specifically:
(a) Feeble of mind; wanting discernment; lacking vigor;
spiritless; as, a weak king or magistrate.
To think every thing disputable is a proof of a
weak mind and captious temper. --Beattie.
Origen was never weak enough to imagine that
there were two Gods. --Waterland.
(b) Resulting from, or indicating, lack of judgment,
discernment, or firmness; unwise; hence, foolish.
If evil thence ensue, She first his weak
indulgence will accuse. --Milton.
(c) Not having full confidence or conviction; not decided
or confirmed; vacillating; wavering.
Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but
not to doubtful disputations. --Rom. xiv. 1.
(d) Not able to withstand temptation, urgency, persuasion,
etc.; easily impressed, moved, or overcome;
accessible; vulnerable; as, weak resolutions; weak
virtue.
Guard thy heart On this weak side, where most
our nature fails. --Addison.
(e) Wanting in power to influence or bind; as, weak ties;
a weak sense of honor of duty.
(f) Not having power to convince; not supported by force
of reason or truth; unsustained; as, a weak argument
or case. ``Convinced of his weak arguing.'' --Milton.
A case so weak . . . hath much persisted in.
--Hooker.
(g) Wanting in point or vigor of expression; as, a weak
sentence; a weak style.
(h) Not prevalent or effective, or not felt to be
prevalent; not potent; feeble. ``Weak prayers.''
--Shak.
(i) Lacking in elements of political strength; not
wielding or having authority or energy; deficient in
the resources that are essential to a ruler or nation;
as, a weak monarch; a weak government or state.
I must make fair weather yet awhile, Till Henry
be more weak, and I more strong. --Shak.
(k) (Stock Exchange) Tending towards lower prices; as, a
weak market.
3. (Gram.)
(a) Pertaining to, or designating, a verb which forms its
preterit (imperfect) and past participle by adding to
the present the suffix -ed, -d, or the variant form
-t; as in the verbs abash, abashed; abate, abated;
deny, denied; feel, felt. See Strong, 19
(a) .
(b) Pertaining to, or designating, a noun in Anglo-Saxon,
etc., the stem of which ends in -n. See Strong, 19
(b) .
Note: Weak is often used in the formation of self-explaining
compounds; as, weak-eyed, weak-handed, weak-hearted,
weak-minded, weak-spirited, and the like.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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