girth

noun

\ ˈgərth

Definition of girth

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a band or strap that encircles the body of an animal to fasten something (such as a saddle) on its back

2a : a measure around a body a man of more than average girth the girth of a tree

b : size, dimensions

girth

verb

girthed; girthing; girths

Definition of girth (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : encircle

2 : to bind or fasten with a band or strap

3 : to measure around the body of something

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about girth

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Synonyms & Antonyms for girth

Synonyms: Noun

circumference

Synonyms: Verb

band, begird, belt, engird [archaic], engirdle, enwind, gird, girdle, girt, wrap

Antonyms: Verb

ungird, unwrap

Examples of girth in a Sentence

Noun

The tree is about two meters in girth. a person of large girth a girth of about two meters

Verb

you'll need to make sure you girth the saddle tightly or you'll fall off the horse his arms couldn't quite girth the stone column

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

There's hardly anything more loudly and aggressively premium than a nearly $2,000 phone with cutting-edge-if-questionably-useful tech, but its uncommon girth at least gives a new shape to this grade of flagship pocket supercomputer. — Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, "The Samsung Galaxy Fold Is a Thick Boy, Just Not in the Way You Actually Need," 20 Feb. 2019 China’s girth Despite slowing, China still posted economic growth above 6% last year, easily surpassing the U.S. and Europe. — Theo Francis, WSJ, "How Bad Is the China Slowdown? U.S. Companies Offer Some Answers," 11 Feb. 2019 Those big ships offer big profits and efficiencies, so much so that ports have been dredging channels and deepening docks to accommodate their girth. — Joe Pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, "Offshore Mega-Terminals Are Coming Because Oil Supertankers Are Too Big for Our Ports," 14 Sep. 2018 Packages that are longer than 96 inches on any side, or whose longest side plus girth—calculated as twice the width plus twice the height—exceeds 130 inches, already incur a surcharge of $80, according to UPS rate guidelines. — Paul Ziobro, WSJ, "UPS Really Doesn’t Want to Ship Your Refrigerator With Your Socks," 23 May 2018 Then, about an hour later, he was led from the station house in TriBeCa and taken to the court at 100 Centre Street, his arms pinned behind him in three sets of handcuffs to accommodate his girth, a law enforcement official said. — Benjamin Mueller, New York Times, "Arrested on Rape Charges, Weinstein Posts $1 Million Bail," 25 May 2018 The shark was 14 feet long, with a fork length of 135 inches and a girth of 78 inches, according to Cedillo. — Travis Fedschun, Fox News, "Texas fisherman reels in hammerhead shark 'catch of multiple lifetimes'," 16 July 2018 Beadnose, for example, was seated in her end-of-summer portrait in a girth-accentuating position that some observers compared to a Hershey’s Kiss, while other bears were shown standing. — Karin Brulliard, The Seattle Times, "America’s fattest bear has now been crowned," 9 Oct. 2018 Their silence strikes me as much as their height and girth. — Robert Earle Howells, SFChronicle.com, "Should we hide the locations of Earth’s greatest trees?," 3 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'girth.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.