as in gaunt
being tall, thin and usually loose-jointed
a gangly teenager who was born to play varsity basketball
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of gangly
The Spurs listed the gangly 20-year-old Frenchman at 235 pounds on their training camp roster, an increase of 5 pounds from his weight listed on the team's roster for its season finale in April.
—
Tom Orsborn, San Antonio Express-News, 2 Oct. 2024
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
Bringing a skittish, awkward energy that contrasted with Letterman’s deadpan persona, O’Brien constantly made fun of his own gangly appearance and inappropriateness for the job.
—Ashraf Khalil, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2025
The stars here, however, are the gangly, majestic pink flamingos feeding in estuary grasses.
—Alex Crevar, New York Times, 11 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for gangly
Tom Orsborn, San Antonio Express-News, 2 Oct. 2024
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
Bringing a skittish, awkward energy that contrasted with Letterman’s deadpan persona, O’Brien constantly made fun of his own gangly appearance and inappropriateness for the job.
—Ashraf Khalil, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2025
The stars here, however, are the gangly, majestic pink flamingos feeding in estuary grasses.
—Alex Crevar, New York Times, 11 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for gangly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangly
Adjective
-
Egon Schiele had his thing for gaunt girls and their undergarments.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
14 Apr. 2025
-
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
-
As a tall, lanky receiver at 6-5, 195 pounds, Skinner is a decent route-runner who has speed and explosiveness to separate from defenders.—
Antwan Staley,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2025
-
Romeo is a lanky boyish redhead (Niall Cunningham).—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
She was dressed for vacation in a sheer white long sleeve mini dress and slides, while the realtor wore a casual travel-day combo of skinny jeans, a white t-shirt and sneakers.—
Natalia Senanayake,
People.com,
13 May 2025
-
Ball is too inattentive on that end despite his impressive offensive skill set, and Miller is quite skinny and struggles to wall up on opposing guards and wings through his core.—
Sam Vecenie,
New York Times,
12 May 2025
Adjective
-
The brush was too spindly to climb and too thick for a fast getaway, and the big Bahamian guide saved my hide by swinging his heavy machete to knock the boar down and fall on it.—
Charles Elliott,
Outdoor Life,
1 May 2025
-
Add pops of red to a neutral space or a spindly chair to capture cottage chic in your room.—
Nora Colomer,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Carlies, a 2024 fifth-round pick, showed promise as a rangy linebacker.—
James Boyd,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
-
The rangy 6-foot-4 player is considered a four-star recruit and a top 70 player in the nation, according to 247Sports.—
Andy Greder,
Twin Cities,
19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The Biden administration lowered prices on 10 widely prescribed drugs, such as the blood thinner Eliquis, which will take effect in 2026.—
Ken Alltucker,
USA Today,
13 May 2025
-
Apple touts its 13-inch iPad Pro as the thinnest Apple device at 0.20 inches.—
Iyaz Akhtar,
PC Magazine,
13 May 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
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 21 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share