muscular

adjective

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mus·cu·lar | \ ˈmə-skyə-lər

Definition of muscular

1a : of, relating to, or constituting muscle

b : of, relating to, or performed by the muscles

2 : having well-developed musculature

3a : of or relating to physical strength : brawny

b : having strength of expression or character : vigorous muscular prose

c : characterized by forcefulness or resolve muscular foreign policy

d : full-bodied muscular wines

Other Words from muscular Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about muscular

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Other Words from muscular

muscularity \ ˌmə-skyə-ˈla-rə-tē

, -ˈler-ə-tē \ noun

muscularly \ ˈməs-kyə-lər-lē

\ adverb

Synonyms & Antonyms for muscular

Synonyms

brawny,
sinewy

Antonyms

scrawny,
skinny

Examples of muscular in a Sentence

He has a muscular physique. His legs are very muscular.

Recent Examples on the Web Kenneth Branagh tries to give it some muscular direction but makes the critical mistake of casting himself as the Russian heavy, who’s like a worse workshop version of his already over-the-top villain in Tenet. — Tim Grierson, Vulture, "Tom Clancy Movies, Ranked," 30 Apr. 2021 Rising frustration with slow growth, poor prospects and massive corruption leaves Putin in need of muscular displays to bolster his popularity. — Ian Bremmer, Time, "Why Putin Flexed His Military Muscle on Ukraine’s Border," 29 Apr. 2021 For Koreans, the guts are part of the delicacy, soft with a gentle funk, providing a nice counterpart to the tenderly muscular, almost crunchy texture of the rest of the abalone. — Steph Cha, Los Angeles Times, "A chef turns to Instagram to survive, and his ready-to-eat Korean seafood takes off," 29 Apr. 2021 Modi swept to a landslide reelection victory in 2019, offering Indians a muscular brand of nationalism that views India as a fundamentally Hindu country rather than the secular republic envisioned by its founders. — Washington Post, "In India’s devastating coronavirus surge, anger at Modi grows," 29 Apr. 2021 The man seen in the video was muscular, had a goatee, and tied-back medium-length black dreadlocks with blond tips. — Wayne K. Roustan, sun-sentinel.com, "Two shot on basketball court at Pembroke Pines rec center. The gunman remains at large, police say.," 28 Apr. 2021 The objective evidence of g-forces and spiraling numbers on the car's digital display is in total contrast to the lack of anything like a recognizable supercar soundtrack, with nothing more than a muscular electrical hum entering the cockpit. — Mike Duff, Car and Driver, "2021 Lotus Evija Should Be Stunningly Quick," 27 Apr. 2021 DeJohn Dammons was a large, muscular, amateur boxer, but Taylor Dammons told his accomplices that his brother would not fight if confronted with a pistol, court records said. — Cory Shaffer, cleveland, "Cleveland man convicted of 2011 murder seeks new trial after co-defendants claim they framed him," 23 Apr. 2021 Staffers at mainstream news organizations are playing an increasingly muscular role in holding their bosses to account. — Washington Post, "Opinion: One America News fires employee quoted in New York Times story," 20 Apr. 2021

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