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

Lie’s Evans is gaunt and distant, a shy man hidden behind a veil of cigarette smoke, unable to process — or even express — his grief. —Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 5 Mar. 2026

Nitibhon, a Thai supermodel, plays her tycoon as comically drab, keeping her gaunt cheeks slack to emphasize her character’s hollowness. —Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 4 Feb. 2026

Regina was standing by the window now, looking even more gaunt under the artificial light of the bulb behind her and the faint glow of the sunrise in front, which barely managed to filter through the balcony awning. —Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026

Thanks in part to Ozempic, thin is back in, with once-plus-size celebrities sporting svelter physiques, and some already-slim stars now verging on gaunt. —Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2026

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