weakness
part of speech
noun (weakness — uncountable; a weakness, weaknesses)
meaning for a pupil
1) Weakness is the state of not being strong in body: «weakness in her legs». tree →
2) A weakness is a part of something or someone that is not good or strong enough: «Spelling is my weakness». tree →
3) A weakness for something means you like it very much and find it hard to resist: «a weakness for chocolate». tree →
sense in the lessons
In school, pupils think about their strengths and weaknesses so they know what to practise. In health lessons, sudden weakness can be a sign of illness and needs an adult's help. In stories, every hero or villain has a weakness (Superman and kryptonite, Achilles and his heel). In engineering, a weakness in a bridge or wall is where it could break. Phrases: «strengths and weaknesses», «a weakness for», «a sign of weakness».
examples
- Spelling is my weakness, but I'm getting better. tree →
- Write down your strengths and weaknesses. tree →
- Kryptonite is Superman's weakness. tree →
- Gran has a weakness for cake. tree →
- Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. tree →
- The engineer found a weakness in the wall. tree →
- The illness caused weakness in his arms. tree →
- It was not long, however, before he had cause to regret his weakness. tree →
note
Plural: weaknesses. From «weak» + -ness. Opposite: strength. Asking for help, or crying, is not weakness.
In the corpora
- Saying "I was wrong" is a strength, not a weakness.
- Saying no to a risky dare, like a jump you are not ready for, is a sensible choice, not a weakness.
- Telling a trusted adult is not weakness; it brings in someone with the power to stop the trouble.
- That isn't weakness; it's how brains work.
- Being polite to a rival who wins, saying «well done», is a sign of strength, not weakness.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «weakness» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.