gaunt

adjective

ˈgȯnt 

ˈgänt

1

: excessively thin and angular

a long gaunt face

2

: barren, desolate

gauntly adverb

gauntness noun

Synonyms of gaunt

• haggard
• skeletal

Choose the Right Synonym for gaunt

lean, spare, lank, lanky, gaunt, rawboned, scrawny, skinny mean thin because of an absence of excess flesh.

lean stresses lack of fat and of curving contours.

a lean racehorse

spare suggests leanness from abstemious living or constant exercise.

the gymnast's spare figure

lank implies tallness as well as leanness.

the lank legs of the heron

lanky suggests awkwardness and loose-jointedness as well as thinness.

a lanky youth, all arms and legs

gaunt implies marked thinness or emaciation as from overwork or suffering.

a prisoner's gaunt face

rawboned suggests a large ungainly build without implying undernourishment.

a rawboned farmer

scrawny and skinny imply an extreme leanness that suggests deficient strength and vitality.

a scrawny chicken

skinny street urchins

Examples of gaunt in a Sentence

He left the hospital looking tired and gaunt.

a gaunt factory on the edge of town

Recent Examples on the Web

And in a third, the gaunt 30-year-old killer flexes, purses his lips and squints. —Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 10 Sep. 2025

The apparently recent footage showed two hostages -- Guy Gilboa-Dalal and Alon Ohel -- looking gaunt and exhausted while being driven around Gaza City. —Wafaa Shurafa, Arkansas Online, 7 Sep. 2025

Then a gaunt old girl lit out over the ridge, and the others broke and followed. —Fred C. Mercer, Outdoor Life, 14 Aug. 2025

But the most notable departure, however, is that of gaunt, artsy Nevermore student Xavier Thorpe, who was presented as a potential love interest for Jenna Ortega's Wednesday Addams. —EW.com, 7 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gaunt

• daunt
• flaunt
• font
• haunt
• jaunt
• pont
• taunt
• vaunt
• want
• avant
• croissant
• detente

Kids Definition

gaunt

adjective

ˈgȯnt 

ˈgänt

1

: being thin and bony (as from hunger or suffering)

2

: grim and forbidding : barren, desolate

gaunt, leafless trees

gauntly adverb

gauntness noun