lankier; lankiest
: ungracefully tall and thin
lankily adverb
lankiness noun
Choose the Right Synonym for lanky

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 lanky in a Sentence

the lanky basketball star was great at slam-dunking
Recent Examples on the Web Tall and lanky, with a Southern drawl that revealed his Tennessee upbringing, Dr. Campbell stumbled on what would become a four-decade-long career in public health. Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Like Busquets, the 6-2 Redondo is lanky, deep-lying midfielder known for his field vision. Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 6 Mar. 2024 Glenn Alan Flook, a lanky, athletic 25-year-old, had taken refuge in a neighbor’s home when it was struck by mud. Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 26 Feb. 2024 The other, a lanky middle-aged man shivering in jeans and a hoodie, was Tony Hawk. Bret Anthony Johnston, The New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2024 Tall and lanky, with long hair and an endearingly dorky air about him, this guy doesn’t exactly fit the profile of someone who will hurt her. Peter Debruge, Variety, 21 Jan. 2024 Tall and lanky, Crombie’s character had a flat, borderline menacing affect and an unblinking 1,000-yard stare. Aimee Ortiz, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2024 Vanderbilt was a big part of that, the lanky defender looking more like himself after missing the first 20 games because of a heel injury. Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2024 Weighing from 2-2.5 pounds, the black-bellied is a long-legged, lanky duck, easily identified by a reddish-pink bill and almost comical pink legs. M.d. Johnson, Field & Stream, 10 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lanky.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1818, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lanky was circa 1818

Dictionary Entries Near lanky

Cite this Entry

“Lanky.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lanky. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

lanky

adjective
lankier; lankiest
: being tall, thin, and usually loose-jointed
a lanky teenager
lankily adverb
lankiness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on lanky

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