as in gaunt
being tall, thin and usually loose-jointed
a gangly teenager who was born to play varsity basketball
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gangly
Light pruning results in a gangly, unkempt plant by midsummer.
—
Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Apr. 2025
Nate leaps into action-hero mode, and the film’s mayhem blowouts include a multi-weapon melee in a restaurant kitchen, leaving our gangly hero horribly burned but quite chipper about it, since his adversary is less fortunate.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 12 Mar. 2025
The character started as a gangly teenager and has matured into a wise warrior.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 12 Dec. 2024
The plant will continue growing in a gangly, unkept way until it is moved to a location with at least 8 hours of direct sunlight.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for gangly
Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Apr. 2025
Nate leaps into action-hero mode, and the film’s mayhem blowouts include a multi-weapon melee in a restaurant kitchen, leaving our gangly hero horribly burned but quite chipper about it, since his adversary is less fortunate.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 12 Mar. 2025
The character started as a gangly teenager and has matured into a wise warrior.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 12 Dec. 2024
The plant will continue growing in a gangly, unkept way until it is moved to a location with at least 8 hours of direct sunlight.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for gangly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangly
Adjective
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In addition to a very gaunt appearance, other symptoms include: Extreme weakness Thin, dry skin with excess skin folds due to loss of fat Sparse, brittle hair that can be easily plucked out 8.—
Jonathan Purtell,
Verywell Health,
13 June 2025
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Recent photos of Bieber out and about show him looking gaunt and disappearing into his clothes.—
Shirley Halperin,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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At a lanky 6-foot-9, Essengue is more of a wing than a center.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
10 July 2025
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Another lanky and elastic player who played that aggressive form of defensive tennis.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
7 July 2025
Adjective
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Nothing fires up Google’s algorithm quite like talk of the return of skinny jeans, but for fall/winter 2025 designers are conspiring to relaunch another dormant Noughties trend: slouchy boho boots that puddle around the ankles and fold over the calves.—
Emma Spedding,
Vogue,
24 July 2025
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Many have been quick to draw a connective throughline between the revival of trends like skinny jeans and bandage dress with the increasing accessibility of Ozempic and other GLP-1 injectables.—
Leah Dolan,
CNN Money,
24 July 2025
Adjective
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Overall, his spindly frame needs some filling out to help in battles, even though he’s shown a willingness to stick his nose into those.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
23 June 2025
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Her long, spindly body operates in an anticipatory arch, her body gliding across the pitch in long, laboured strides until igniting into a blur, a combination of ferocity and grace.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
6 July 2025
Adjective
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He’s got some wiry strength and power with room to fill out and add lean muscle mass to a very rangy frame.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
27 June 2025
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With two right-handers due up near the bottom of the Nationals’ lefty-heavy lineup, Estrada was called first and worked a 1-2-3 eighth with help from a rangy play by Wade.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 June 2025
Adjective
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Cover it with a thin layer of topsoil or compost to cover the seeds.—
Cody Godwin,
USA Today,
24 July 2025
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The market is thin in run-producing bats, and O'Hearn not only fills that need but is versatile enough to play the corner outfield spots as well.—
Hunter Mulholland,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 July 2025
Adjective
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Lift your hips off the ground and place a block underneath your sacrum, the widest, boniest part of your pelvis.—
Cory Martin,
Verywell Health,
16 Oct. 2024
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Differences in Adult Bones That being said, some adults are bonier than others.—
Sam Walters,
Discover Magazine,
3 Nov. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Gangly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gangly. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
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