sinewy

adjective

sin·​ewy ˈsin-yə-wē 

 also  ˈsi-nə-

1

: full of sinews: such as

a

: tough, stringy

sinewy meat

b

: strong

sinewy arms

2

: marked by the strength of sinews

a demanding sinewy intelligence

—Helen Dudar

Synonyms

• muscular
• strong
• powerful

Examples of sinewy in a Sentence

The lion has a sinewy body.

a sinewy piece of meat

Recent Examples on the Web

This sort of article, in which a beleaguered athlete reports that he’s been training constantly and shows off sinewy triceps and diamond-cut calves, has a long tradition in sports media. —Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2025

Once neighbors had amassed a pile of larger items, one of the camp's earliest residents, a sinewy man in his 50s named Tom Rock, walked over and began helping to lift them into the dumpster. —Jordan Smith, IndyStar, 26 July 2025

The infected familiar from the original virus strain are now sinewy figures wandering the land, feral and naked, their clothes having disintegrated long ago. —David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 18 June 2025

Walter, whose polyphonic sensibility first charmed me in Beautiful Ruins, has here made something salty, sinewy, and satisfying from fairly tough material. —Emily Temple may 27, Literary Hub, 27 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

sinewy

adjective

sin·​ewy ˈsin-yə-wē 

 also  ˈsin-ə-

1

: full of sinews : stringy

sinewy meat

2

: strong sense 1

sinewy arms