Dictionary

slender en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ˈslɛndɚ/ (Canada, General-American)
• (New-Jersey) audio
• slĕnʹdər (Canada, General-American)
• /ˈslɛndə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (California) audio
• /ˈslendə/ (Australia, New-Zealand)

Etymology

From Middle English slendre, sclendre, from Old French esclendre (“thin, slender”), from Middle Dutch slinder (“thin, lank”), from Proto-Germanic *slindraz (“sliding, slippery”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃sleydʰ- (“to slip”). Cognate with Bavarian Schlenderling (“that which dangles”), German schlendern (“to saunter, stroll”), Dutch slidderen, slinderen (“to wriggle, creep like a serpent”), Low German slindern (“to slide on ice”). More at slide, slither.

Meanings

1. Thin; slim.
   • A rod is a long slender pole used for angling.
   • Sepia Delft tiles surrounded the fireplace, their crudely drawn Biblical scenes in faded cyclamen blending with the pinkish pine, while above them, instead of a mantelshelf, there was an archway high enough to form a balcony with slender balusters and a tapestry-hung wall behind. 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 3, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
   • Smooth and slender and naked, Mary Rittersdorf faced her husband. 1964, Philip K. Dick, “THIRTEEN”, in Clans of the Alphane Moon, United States: Ace Books, →OCLC; republished London: HarperCollinsPublishers, 1996, →ISBN, page 193:
   • She is very slender.
2. (figuratively) Meagre; deficient.
   • The slender service between Ellesmere Port and Helsby has been added, too. 2022 January 26, Barry Doe, “Fabrik offers an end to hard times”, in RAIL, number 949, page 42:
   • The grounds for the conjecture are somewhat slender. 1911, James George Frazer, The Golden Bough, volume 9, page 413:
   • Being a person of slender means, he was unable to afford any luxuries.
3. (qualifier:Gaelic languages) Palatalized.

Forms

Antonyms

broad (antonym(s) of “palatalized”) · large · obese · overweight · strapping · heavy

Deriveds

slender sedge · slenderness · slender suckerfish · slender vetch · slender reed · slender moa · slender-billed gull · slender-billed greenfinch · slenderize · unslender · slender-horned gazelle · Slender West Lake · slender loris · slenderish · slender cypress pine · slender poison · slenderization · slender skimmer · red slender loris · slender-bodied · slender seahorse · slender tare · slender-billed curlew · slender sea lettuce · slender shrew · slenderly · Slender Man

Descendants

slender

Hypernyms

physique · thin

Hyponyms

ectomorphic · flat-chested

Relateds

cadaverous · scrawny · thin person

Synonyms

sparse · lithesome · slinky · scarce · leansome · lank · svelte · lean · slight · willowy · sleek · sylphlike · lissome · gaunt · swack · insufficient (meagre) · lithe (thin) · slim · gracile · slender · rangy

slender en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ˈslɛndɚ/ (Canada, General-American)
• (New-Jersey) audio
• slĕnʹdər (Canada, General-American)
• /ˈslɛndə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (California) audio
• /ˈslendə/ (Australia, New-Zealand)

Etymology

From Middle English slendre, sclendre, from Old French esclendre (“thin, slender”), from Middle Dutch slinder (“thin, lank”), from Proto-Germanic *slindraz (“sliding, slippery”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃sleydʰ- (“to slip”). Cognate with Bavarian Schlenderling (“that which dangles”), German schlendern (“to saunter, stroll”), Dutch slidderen, slinderen (“to wriggle, creep like a serpent”), Low German slindern (“to slide on ice”). More at slide, slither.

Meanings

1. (transitive) To attenuate.
   • Rolled-up sleeves bared her strong forearms, which slendered down when they came to the wrists and hands. 1954, Elizabeth Bowen, A World of Love, page 38:

Forms

Translations (77)

cs štíhlý (thin) · pdt schlank (thin) · crh cuka (thin) · pt magro (thin) · mi pūhihi (thin) · hu karcsú (thin) · sv slank (thin) · el λεπτός (thin) · gd caol (thin) · sk tenký (thin) · bg стро́ен (thin) · uk струнки́й (thin) · sh vȉtak (thin) · pdt denn (thin) · be стро́мкі (thin) · mk тенок (thin) · cmn 苗條 /苗条 (thin) · ca esvelt (thin) · da slank (thin) · cs útlý (thin) · ko 날씬하다 (thin) · es slender (slénder) (thin) · sh ви̏так (thin) · mi tūpuhi (thin) · el ραδινός (thin) · fi hoikka (thin) · eo svelta (thin) · ja 細い (thin) · be стро́йны (thin) · fr svelte (thin) · ota ضعیف (thin) · sk štíhly (thin) · ga seangchruthach (thin) · nl slank (thin) · lv slaids (thin) · it snello (thin) · ro subtire (thin) · mi pīrahirahi (thin) · hi पतला (thin) · ar أَهْيَف (thin) · grc ῥαδινός (thin) · bg тъ́нък (thin) · sh мр̏шав (thin) · mi tūpuhipuhi (thin) · wyi kalk-kalk-mirrin broong (thin) · vi mảnh khảnh (thin) · ota نازك (thin) · el ισχνός (thin) · la gracilis (thin) · sl vitek (thin) · gd seang (thin) · ja 細長い (thin) · uk тонки́й (thin) · ar نَحِيل (thin) · pl smukły (thin) · la tenuis (thin) · ur پتلا (thin) · hu vékony (thin) · ja ほっそりした (thin) · gl esbelto (thin) · fr mince (thin) · sh mȑšav (thin) · pl szczupły (thin) · ru стро́йный (thin) · chr ᎤᎴᏐᏓ (thin) · ru то́нкий (thin) · ar نَحِيف (thin) · es esbelto (thin) · grc βράδινος (thin) · mk виток (thin) · de schlank (thin) · pt esbelto (thin) · sa तनु (thin) · nrf mînchon (thin) · el άπλερος (thin) · nb slank (thin) · ga caol (thin)