emaciated

adjective

ema·​ci·​at·​ed i-ˈmā-shē-ˌā-təd  -ˈmā-sē- 

: very thin and feeble especially from lack of nutrition or illness

He was deadly pale and terribly emaciated, with the protruding, brilliant eyes of a man whose spirit was greater than his strength.

—Arthur Conan Doyle

My cheek had grown pale with study, and my person had become emaciated with confinement.

—Mary Shelley

Synonyms

• gaunt
• haggard
• skeletal

Examples of emaciated in a Sentence

the emaciated bodies of the survivors of the concentration camps

Recent Examples on the Web

Braslavski appeared in a Hamas video published earlier this year, looking emaciated. —Callum Sutherland, Time, 13 Oct. 2025

For over a year, residents have urged District Attorney Summer Stephan to prosecute, sending more than 16,000 emails, yet horses remain neglected — and now another emaciated horse has been found. —U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Oct. 2025

They have been seen in an emaciated state in proof-of-life and propaganda videos produced by Hamas. —Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 10 Oct. 2025

The 118-pound animal appeared to be old, evidenced by its emaciated condition and severely worn, broken and missing teeth. —Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 9 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1627, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for emaciated

• abbreviated
• accelerated
• accentuated
• accommodated
• acculturated
• accumulated
• acidulated
• adjudicated
• administrated
• adulterated
• affiliated
• agglomerated