Synonyms of sinewy

sinewy

adjective

ˈsin-yə-wē 

1

as in muscular

having muscles capable of exerting great physical force

the lithe, sinewy body of the ballet company's leading male dancer

Synonyms & Similar Words

• muscular
• strong
• powerful
• rugged
• stout
• mighty
• brawny
• masculine
• athletic
• stalwart
• sturdy
• tough
• potent
• hard
• beefy
• burly
• energetic
• forceful
• trim
• virile
• vigorous
• husky
• healthy
• forcible
• fit
• robust
• puissant
• lusty
• strengthened
• strapping
• able-bodied
• sound
• vitalized
• hale
• hearty
• energized
• toughened
• red-blooded
• inured
• invigorated

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• feeble
• weak
• delicate
• frail
• wimpy
• disabled
• paralyzed
• small
• incapacitated
• weakling
• impotent
• powerless
• puny
• slight
• unhealthy
• unfit
• unathletic

2

as in brawny

marked by a well-developed musculature

the sinewy arms of the weight lifter

Synonyms & Similar Words

• muscular
• brawny
• athletic
• strong
• wiry
• powerful
• sculpted
• sturdy
• beefy
• burly
• strapping
• robust
• husky
• mighty
• hefty
• stout
• herculean
• hulking
• able-bodied
• stalwart
• rugged
• muscle-bound

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• skinny
• scrawny
• weak
• feeble
• fragile
• delicate
• frail
• slender
• thin
• light
• lightweight
• slight
• lean
• weakly
• debilitated
• enfeebled
• weakened
• wimpy
• effete
• nonathletic
• willowy
• slim
• svelte
• gaunt
• spare
• emaciated
• lank
• enervated
• sylphlike
• rawboned
• scraggy

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of sinewy

That brisk storytelling economy is a good fit for Theron’s own terse, sinewy performance style. — Guy Lodge, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026

On a street lined with sinewy banyan trees in Taipei’s Songshan District, school administrator Huang Huiming agrees that Beijing’s bet might not pan out. — Ann Scott Tyson, Christian Science Monitor, 13 Apr. 2026

Alongside their sinewy body form, the ancestors of seagrass carried with them from dry land two useful features that no sea creature possessed. — David George Haskell, Big Think, 27 Mar. 2026

Under spirited sprints around the Algarve region’s sinewy mountain roads, the range depletion wasn’t terrible, losing about 20 or 25 percent after 90 miles of pushing. — Sean Evans, Robb Report, 24 Mar. 2026