Brittleness

having hardness and rigidity but little tensile strength; breaking readily with a comparatively smooth fracture, as glass.
easily damaged or destroyed; fragile; frail:
a brittle marriage.
lacking warmth, sensitivity, or compassion; aloof; self-centered:
a self-possessed, cool, and rather brittle person.
having a sharp, tense quality:
a brittle tone of voice.
unstable or impermanent; evanescent.
a confection of melted sugar, usually with nuts, brittle when cooled:
peanut brittle.
to be or become brittle; crumble.
Historical Examples

Seasoning of Wood Joseph B. Wagner
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, March 1930 Various
Thelma Marie Corelli
Birds of the Plains Douglas Dewar
The Honorable Senator Sage-Brush Francis Lynde
Animal Life of the British Isles Edward Step
The Rainbow D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence
Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, No. IX.–February, 1851.–Vol. II. Various
Artificial Light M. Luckiesh
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 7 Various

noun
the quality of being brittle
(metallurgy) the tendency of a metal to break without being significantly distorted or exposed to a high level of stress Compare toughness (sense 2), softness (sense 2)
adjective
easily cracked, snapped, or broken; fragile
curt or irritable: a brittle reply
hard or sharp in quality
noun
a crunchy sweet made with treacle and nuts: peanut brittle
adj.
brittle
(brĭt’l)
Having a tendency to break when subject to high stress. Brittle materials have undergone very little strain when they reach their elastic limit, and tend to break at that limit. Compare ductile.