as in stout
being compact and broad in build and often short in stature
a short, thickset bulldog
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Recent Examples of thickset
The passenger door opened and a thickset man with a short beard and mustache got out.
—
Jamie Quatro, Harper's Magazine, 2 Aug. 2024
There’s a thickset dashboard dotted with prominent air vents and a thick, smooth center section that connects the door panels.
—Andrew Wendler, Car and Driver, 8 Aug. 2023
Julia's grandmother Zora was short and thickset and typical of the women of her generation in that her days consisted of brief breaks between cooking and cleaning—if not grocery shopping or preparing a meal, she could be found scrubbing the Khrushchyovka apartment with great fa- naticism.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 4 May 2021
And, with two big interior pockets, protective metal feet, and thickset handles, your luggage can accommodate everything this lifestyle entails.
—Irene Richardson, Travel + Leisure, 8 Mar. 2023
The thickset prison administrator, known as Bawar to his friends, had been keenly aware that the prison was vulnerable to assault.
—Washington Post, 5 Feb. 2022
The hotel's two restaurants, an offshoot of the Beefbar, and Biancaneve, are awash with more banquettes upholstered in colorful cozy fabrics arranged around thickset wood tables, a nod to the hotel's Alpine location.
—Rooksana Hossenally, Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022
The lecturer, a short, thickset man with a ruddy face and a big voice, was coming to the end of his talk.
—Joseph Loconte, National Review, 31 Aug. 2019
Jamie Quatro, Harper's Magazine, 2 Aug. 2024
There’s a thickset dashboard dotted with prominent air vents and a thick, smooth center section that connects the door panels.
—Andrew Wendler, Car and Driver, 8 Aug. 2023
Julia's grandmother Zora was short and thickset and typical of the women of her generation in that her days consisted of brief breaks between cooking and cleaning—if not grocery shopping or preparing a meal, she could be found scrubbing the Khrushchyovka apartment with great fa- naticism.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 4 May 2021
And, with two big interior pockets, protective metal feet, and thickset handles, your luggage can accommodate everything this lifestyle entails.
—Irene Richardson, Travel + Leisure, 8 Mar. 2023
The thickset prison administrator, known as Bawar to his friends, had been keenly aware that the prison was vulnerable to assault.
—Washington Post, 5 Feb. 2022
The hotel's two restaurants, an offshoot of the Beefbar, and Biancaneve, are awash with more banquettes upholstered in colorful cozy fabrics arranged around thickset wood tables, a nod to the hotel's Alpine location.
—Rooksana Hossenally, Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022
The lecturer, a short, thickset man with a ruddy face and a big voice, was coming to the end of his talk.
—Joseph Loconte, National Review, 31 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thickset
Adjective
-
Zilpha still thought of Jaron as a man of Cornish hedges, although his work was with Charles Upchurch Sway Partners (CUSP), a hedge fund operated from a central trunk in Lausanne and its stout branch in New York.—
Annie Proulx,
New Yorker,
10 Aug. 2025
-
The Pride came out with more intensity in the second half, searching for a way to break through Utah’s stout defense.—
Kyle Foley,
The Orlando Sentinel,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Prior to the arrival of police at the site of the deadly stabbing, a stocky bald man and a thin woman wearing her hair in a ponytail — both described as possibly homeless — were seen leaving the area in separate directions.—
City News Service,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 July 2025
-
The priest was an Assyrian monk, a stocky, bushy-bearded man with long black hair; the girl looked to be about 11.—
John Jeremiah Sullivan James Patrick Cronin Emma Kehlbeck Zak Mouton,
New York Times,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The chili verde is soft and succulent and the plump chicken pairs well with any of the three salsas brought to the table.—
Roger Naylor,
AZCentral.com,
14 Aug. 2025
-
Unlike the ones now rotting on Ian Chandler’s farm, these had a chance to be harvested by hand and are in their prime — plump and juicy and ready to eat.—
David Culver,
CNN Money,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The large arachnids may look like any normal tarantula from first glance — long, sturdy legs, hair covering their bodies and two shorter legs at the front of the body poised to grab unsuspecting prey.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
4 Aug. 2025
-
Alem and Schneider arrived at their farm plot in Bronzeville in broad-brimmed hats and sturdy boots, ready to harvest zucchini and cucumber under a blazing summer sun.—
Nara Schoenberg,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Each Jesse & Ben’s fry is three-eights of an inch thick.—
Andrew Watman,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
-
Rare models like a two-door Runabout might push $50K. Along with help from Jeff Humble, president of the Northern Michigan Ts (the local Model T club), Dean trained himself to drive the Model T using an original owner’s manual as thick as Manhattan’s phone book.—
The Detroit News,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Sullivans Island Police Chief Glenn Meadows described the suspect as heavyset, in his 40s, balding with a goatee.—
David Matthews,
New York Daily News,
1 May 2025
-
The woman described the robbery suspect as a heavyset man with a beard, police said.—
Staff report,
Hartford Courant,
20 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Thickset.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thickset. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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