Meaning of thin in English
Table of contents
Pronunciation
/θɪn/US accent
UK accent
to browse different examples of pronunciation.Verb
thinDefinitions
1. lose thicknessExamples
- « become thin or thinner »
Antonyms
- 2. make thin or thinner
Examples
- « Thin the solution »
Antonyms
Derived terms
- 3. lessen the strength or flavor of a solution or mixture
Examples
- « cut bourbon »
Derived terms
- 4. take off weight
Antonyms
Derived terms
Classifying Adjective
thinDefinitions
1. very narrowExamples
- « a thin line across the page »
Synonyms
- 2. having little substance or significance
Examples
- « a flimsy excuse »
- « slight evidence »
- « a tenuous argument »
- « a thin plot »
Synonyms
- 3. not dense
Examples
- « a thin beard »
- « trees were sparse »
Synonyms
- 4. lacking spirit or sincere effort
Examples
- « a thin smile »
Synonyms
Adverb
thinDefinitions
1. without viscosityExamples
- « the blood was flowing thin »
Antonyms
Qualitative Adjective
thinEtymology
Old English thynne, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch dun and German dünn, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin tenuisDefinitions
1. of relatively small extent from one surface to the opposite or in cross sectionExamples
- « thin wire »
- « a thin chiffon blouse »
- « a thin book »
- « a thin layer of paint »
Synonyms
- bladed
- capillary
- hairlike
- compressed
- flat
- depressed
- diaphanous
- filmy
- gauzy
- gossamer
- see-through
- sheer
- transparent
- vaporous
- cobwebby
- filamentous
- filiform
- filamentlike
- threadlike
- thready
- fine
- flimsy
- light
- hyperfine
- paper thin
- papery
- sleazy
- slender
- tenuous
- wafer-thin
- chiffon
- ribbonlike
- ribbony
Antonyms
- 2. lacking excess flesh
Examples
- « you can't be too rich or too thin »
- « Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look-Shakespeare »
Synonyms
- anorexic
- anorectic
- bony
- cadaverous
- emaciated
- gaunt
- haggard
- pinched
- skeletal
- wasted
- deep-eyed
- hollow-eyed
- sunken-eyed
- fine-drawn
- gangling
- gangly
- lanky
- lank
- spindly
- rawboned
- reedy
- reedlike
- twiggy
- twiglike
- scarecrowish
- scraggy
- scrawny
- skinny
- underweight
- weedy
- shriveled
- shrivelled
- shrunken
- withered
- wizen
- wizened
- slender
- slight
- slim
- slender-waisted
- slim-waisted
- wasp-waisted
- spare
- trim
- spindle-legged
- spindle-shanked
- stringy
- wiry
- wisplike
- wispy
Antonyms
- 3. relatively thin in consistency or low in density
Examples
- « not viscous »
- « air is thin at high altitudes »
- « a thin soup »
- « skimmed milk is much thinner than whole milk »
- « thin oil »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 4. (of sound) lacking resonance or volume
Examples
- « a thin feeble cry »
Synonyms
Antonyms
Famous quotes
- « Beauty is only skin deep, and the world is full of thin skinned people. » Richard Armour
- « I've just got crap hair. Although I inherited a lot of stuff from my dad, including giant knees, I didn't get his good, thick hair. I got my mother's thin, wispy, non-event hair instead. » Jenny Eclair
- « Mmmm... the comedy that matters is the comedy you pull out of thin air. It's a bit like when something funny has happened and you try to explain it to someone else and end up saying, 'You had to be there.' » Jack Dee
- « Last year I was diagnosed with osteoporosis. I was over 50, Caucasian, thin, small-framed, and I have it in my genetic history. It was almost a slam-dunk. » Sally Field
- « Americans like fat books and thin women. » Russell Baker