Feeble or febrile-英语点津_其他_趣味英语-查字典英语网

Feeble or febrile-英语点津

You could've disregarded your fear of your teacher and asked directly for an answer. You could have been feeling the fear and still be asking for an answer. Note, I'm not questioning either you or your teacher. I am not questioning your fear - I choose to trust you to have a good reason to be "afraid of him". I am not questioning your teacher - I choose to trust he has a good reason to be "stern" and perhaps sometimes "severe" with his class. I believe the two of you could work it out. You can work out a relationship where you could ask a question despite your fear and in spite of his overbearing veneer (again trusting your description). I believe the two of you can do it. I believe you will.

What I intend to do here is to point out a difference between "febrile" and "feeble" so that you will be able to make up your own mind whether you used it correctly in your composition.

Febrile comes from the Latin word "febris", meaning "fever".

So there! Knowing its origin, you realize that "febrile" is best used in situations indicating a temporary physical ailment of fever. Don't have to take it literally, but you do need to be careful when you decide to use it more liberally.

Someone who is febrile (having a fever) and weak can be very different from someone who is feeble (lacking strength) and weak. The former can be full of nervous excitement in the head while being physically weak and helpless. The latter, well, could just be strength-less in the body by nature.