svelte

adjective

ˈsvelt How to pronounce svelte (audio)
ˈsfelt
svelter; sveltest
1
a
b
: having clean lines : sleek
2
sveltely adverb
svelteness noun

Did you know?

In Death on the Rocks, a 2013 mystery novel by Deryn Lake, the hero John Rawlings is described as having “svelte eyebrows” (he raises them also in 1995’s Death at the Beggar’s Opera). Lake’s oeuvre notwithstanding, svelte is not an adjective commonly applied to eyebrows, though it’s perfectly appropriate to do so—one of the word’s meanings is “sleek,” and it is often used to describe such disparate things as gowns and sports cars having clean lines. But “svelte eyebrows” also makes etymological sense; svelte came to English (by way of French) from the Italian adjective svelto, which itself comes from the verb svellere, meaning “to pluck out.” Since its debut in English in the early 19th century, however, svelte has more often been used with its original meaning to describe a person’s body—not just the tufts of hair above their eyes—as slender, graceful, or lithe.

Examples of svelte in a Sentence

She has a svelte figure. the svelte dancer seemed to float across the stage
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Roof Space On the other hand, the lack of an extra floor panel does help keep the Roof Space 4 rather svelte when packed. New Atlas, 11 Mar. 2025 The Tecno Spark Slim is a full-size phone that's a mere 5.75mm (0.22 inches) thick, which is a lot more svelte than the iPhone 16 (7.7mm, 0.3 inches) and the Galaxy S25 (7.2mm, 0.28 inches). Eric Zeman, PCMAG, 7 Mar. 2025 None are particularly svelte (some have argued on X that the edits are fatphobic). Rebecca Jennings, Vulture, 6 Mar. 2025 Wild ponies, svelte & savage, graze in dune grasses, whinny, yawn. J.t. Townley, The New York Review of Books, 6 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for svelte

Word History

Etymology

French, from Italian svelto, from past participle of svellere to pluck out, modification of Latin evellere, from e- + vellere to pluck — more at vulnerable

First Known Use

circa 1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of svelte was circa 1817

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Cite this Entry

“Svelte.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/svelte. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

svelte

adjective
: slender and graceful in form
sveltely adverb
svelteness noun
Etymology

from French svelte "slender, sleek," from Italian svelto (same meaning), derived from svellere "to pluck out," derived from Latin evellere "to pluck"

More from Merriam-Webster on svelte

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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