as in gaunt
suffering extreme weight loss as a result of hunger or disease
the stray kitten's skeletal body was pitiful to look at
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Recent Examples of skeletal
There, Carlin found his mother, looking skeletal in a hospital bed, wearing a diaper.
—
Sarah Stillman, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
Officers responded to a report of a deceased person and found the skeletal remains of an unidentified woman.
—Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Investigators are trying to identify skeletal remains found this month in northern Aurora under an Interstate 225 overpass, police said.
—Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2025
The impressive tomb didn’t contain skeletal remains that could help identify its owner.
—Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 5 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for skeletal
Sarah Stillman, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
Officers responded to a report of a deceased person and found the skeletal remains of an unidentified woman.
—Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Investigators are trying to identify skeletal remains found this month in northern Aurora under an Interstate 225 overpass, police said.
—Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2025
The impressive tomb didn’t contain skeletal remains that could help identify its owner.
—Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 5 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for skeletal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skeletal
Adjective
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Egon Schiele had his thing for gaunt girls and their undergarments.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
14 Apr. 2025
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Tall and thin, bordering on gaunt, he was dressed in blue jeans, a flannel shirt, an old Army jacket, work boots, gloves and a blue wool cap.—
Alanna Nash,
Variety,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Weinstein often looked haggard and out of it — unshaven, mouth ajar, eyes bleary.—
Phoebe Eaton,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Apr. 2025
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The scene makes Perkins crack up — Death looks tired and haggard, his job is never done (especially this week), and while the father-son may have escaped this round, their paths will cross in some unknowable way in the future.—
Chris O'Falt,
IndieWire,
21 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Skeletal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skeletal. Accessed 10 May. 2025.
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