- weakness
- noun1 lack of strengthADJECTIVE▪ big, fundamental, great, major, profound, serious, significant▪ glaring▪
The team doesn't have any glaring weaknesses.
▪ fatal▪a fatal weakness in his theory
▪ primary▪ small▪ physical▪ structural▪ methodological▪the primary methodological weakness of this study
▪ personal▪ muscle, muscular▪ economic, political▪ apparent, perceived▪The criminals exploit apparent weaknesses in the system.
▪ obvious▪She didn't seem to have any obvious weaknesses.
▪ inherent, intrinsic▪ institutional▪ underlying▪the underlying weakness of the coalition's position
▪ possible, potential▪Make companies aware of potential weaknesses so they know what steps to take.
▪ relative▪a position of relative weakness
▪ human▪ moral▪humanity's moral weakness and capacity for evil
VERB + WEAKNESS▪ have, suffer from▪ cause, create▪ exploit▪ assess, identify▪ address▪The management had to address specific weaknesses in training.
▪ demonstrate, expose, highlight, point out, point to, reveal, show▪ acknowledge, admit, recognize▪business leaders who refuse to admit their weaknesses
▪ hide▪ know▪They know their strengths and weaknesses.
▪ minimize, overcomeWEAKNESS + VERB▪ be, lie▪The greatest weakness of the plan lies in its lack of government support.
PREPOSITION▪ weakness in▪Service conditions soon revealed the inherent weaknesses in the vehicle's design.
PHRASES▪ a moment of weakness▪In a moment of weakness I let him drive my car.
▪ a sign of weakness▪He saw compromise as a sign of weakness.
▪ strengths and weaknesses▪The appraisal system seeks to assess employees' strengths and weaknesses.
2 liking for sth/sbADJECTIVE▪ realVERB + WEAKNESS▪ have▪I have a real weakness for chocolate.
▪ develop▪ overcomePREPOSITION▪ weakness for▪He can't overcome his weakness for fatty foods.
Collocations dictionary. 2013.