SKINNY Synonyms: 137 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'skinny' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of skinny are gaunt , lanky , lank , lean , rawboned , scrawny , and spare . While all these words mean "thin because of an absence of excess flesh," scrawny and skinny imply an extreme leanness that suggests deficient strength and vitality. // a scrawny chicken // skinny street urchins

Q: When is 'gaunt' a more appropriate choice than 'skinny'?

The meanings of gaunt and skinny largely overlap; however, gaunt implies marked thinness or emaciation as from overwork or suffering. // a prisoner's gaunt face

Q: When is it sensible to use 'lank' instead of 'skinny'?

While the synonyms lank and skinny are close in meaning, lank implies tallness as well as leanness. // the lank legs of the heron

Q: Where would 'lanky' be a reasonable alternative to 'skinny'?

In some situations, the words lanky and skinny are roughly equivalent. However, lanky suggests awkwardness and loose-jointedness as well as thinness. // a lanky youth, all arms and legs

Q: When can 'lean' be used instead of 'skinny'?

While in some cases nearly identical to skinny , lean stresses lack of fat and of curving contours. // a lean racehorse

Q: When might 'rawboned' be a better fit than 'skinny'?

The synonyms rawboned and skinny are sometimes interchangeable, but rawboned suggests a large ungainly build without implying undernourishment. // a rawboned farmer

Q: When could 'spare' be used to replace 'skinny'?

The words spare and skinny are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, spare suggests leanness from abstemious living or constant exercise. // the gymnast's spare figure

skinny 1 of 2

adjective

ˈski-nē

Definition of skinny

as in thin

being of less than usual width the tree swing was supported only by a couple of skinny branches

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in slender

having a noticeably small amount of body fat her grandmother was always insisting that she was too skinny and never tired of trying to force more food on her

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

skinny

2 of 2

noun

slang

as in scoop

information not generally available to the public a TV show that offers all the skinny on Tinseltown and the stars that light it up

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective skinny contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of skinny are gaunt, lanky, lank, lean, rawboned, scrawny, and spare. While all these words mean "thin because of an absence of excess flesh," scrawny and skinny imply an extreme leanness that suggests deficient strength and vitality.

a scrawny chicken

skinny street urchins

When is gaunt a more appropriate choice than skinny?

The meanings of gaunt and skinny largely overlap; however, gaunt implies marked thinness or emaciation as from overwork or suffering.

a prisoner's gaunt face

When is it sensible to use lank instead of skinny?

While the synonyms lank and skinny are close in meaning, lank implies tallness as well as leanness.

the lank legs of the heron

Where would lanky be a reasonable alternative to skinny?

In some situations, the words lanky and skinny are roughly equivalent. However, lanky suggests awkwardness and loose-jointedness as well as thinness.

a lanky youth, all arms and legs

When can lean be used instead of skinny?

While in some cases nearly identical to skinny, lean stresses lack of fat and of curving contours.

a lean racehorse

When might rawboned be a better fit than skinny?

The synonyms rawboned and skinny are sometimes interchangeable, but rawboned suggests a large ungainly build without implying undernourishment.

a rawboned farmer

When could spare be used to replace skinny?

The words spare and skinny are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, spare suggests leanness from abstemious living or constant exercise.

the gymnast's spare figure

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of skinny

Adjective

Love is blind, love is on the spectrum, love is… suddenly skinny? — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 18 Aug. 2026 Police described the intruder as a 6-foot-tall skinny Black man between 30 and 40 years old, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt. — Logan Hall, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026

Noun

While ankle-hugging skinnies aren't all the rage just yet, slimmer shapes are easier than ever to find. — Kelsey Legg, ABC News, 18 Feb. 2026 And while many might be reluctant to close the time capsule door on their beloved skinnies, some of us are sighing with relief that the current denim trend is comfy enough for travel. — Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 11 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for skinny

Recent Examples of Synonyms for skinny

Adjective

Days turn crisp, aspens begin streaking the valley with gold and summer crowds thin in Grand Teton National Park.

— Brittany Anas, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
Unlike mainstream fusion projects such as tokamaks, the Texatron does not rely on giant superconducting magnets to hold a thin gas in place for long periods.

— Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of thin

Adjective

The tall, slender Berry imagined, chronicled and lived out his vision of a self-sustaining community in which no one had to ask where their food came from or the names of their neighbors.

— ABC News, ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026
Several other curved, slender bones were soon found nearby, according to pictures shared with the station.

— Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of slender

Noun

Use a large spoon or ice cream scoop to remove membranes and seeds.

— Sheryl Geerts, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Aug. 2026
Yeo recommends weighing food in grams with a digital kitchen scale because even a rounded scoop of calorie-dense kibble can add more calories than expected.

— Lauren Paige Richeson, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of scoop

Adjective

Burner accounts from China and Russia And those partnership ads are channeled through a narrow group of creators, ORL says.

— Jim Edwards, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026
Just like their simulated counterparts, the worms consistently moved through the narrower channels faster than the wider ones.

— K. R. Prathyusha, The Conversation, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of narrow

Noun

Inside tip Make the most of a hotel guest perk by visiting parts of Nara Prison Museum during after hours, when the daytime crowds have disappeared.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Sep. 2026
In the toothbrush head, roughly the size of a pencil tip, sit an intraoral 100k pixel micro camera, a light and a jet.

— Tianwei Zhang, Footwear News, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of tip

Adjective

Some lenders use standard factors by industry; others will accept a letter from a CPA attesting to the business’s actual expense ratio, which can meaningfully improve the income calculation for a lean operation.

— Karen Koehler, Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2026
This comes on top of higher home prices, which seem to now be accelerating again in some parts of the country, due to lean supply.

— Diana Olick, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of lean

Noun

To be eligible to play Power Four college sports now means to breathe; there are rumors that a group of ghosts from the 1907 Pitt Panthers is suing the NCAA to play another year.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Aug. 2026
Future risks As news of Wednesday’s disaster along the border spread, so did rumors that the incident was the result of a dam burst on China’s side of border.

— Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of rumor

Browse Nearby Words

skinning

skinny

skins

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Style

“Skinny.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skinny. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of skinny

adjective

noun

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Synonyms of skinny

adjective

noun

Synonym Chooser

Example Sentences

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Articles Related to skinny

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