different between slender vs gracile

English

Etymology

From Middle English slendre, sclendre, from Old French esclendre (“thin, slender”), from Old Dutch slinder (“thin, lank”), from Proto-Germanic *slindraz (“sliding, slippery”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleyd?- (“to slip”). Cognate with Bavarian Schlenderling (“that which dangles”), German schlendern (“to saunter, stroll”), Dutch slidderen, slinderen (“to wriggle, creep like a serpent”), Low German slindern (“to slide on ice”). More at slide, slither.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?sl?nd?/
• (General American) enPR: sl?n?d?r, IPA^(key): /?sl?nd?/
• Rhymes: -?nd?(?)
• Hyphenation: slen?der

Adjective

slender (comparative slenderer, superlative slenderest)

1. Thin; slim.

2. (figuratively) meagre; deficient

   Being a person of slender means, he was unable to afford any luxuries.

3. (Gaelic languages) Palatalized.

Synonyms

• (thin): lithe, svelte, willowy; see also Thesaurus:slender
• (meagre): insufficient, scarce, sparse; see also Thesaurus:inadequate

Antonyms

• (palatalized): broad
• See also Thesaurus:obese

Derived terms

• slender reed

Translations

Anagrams

• lenders, relends

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French gracil, gracile (“slender, thin”) (modern French gracile (“gracile”)), or directly from its etymon Latin gracilis (“slender, slim, thin; lean, meagre, scanty; simple, unadorned”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ker?- (“to become thin; to wane”). Sense 2 (“graceful or gracefully slender”) was apparently influenced by the non-cognate word grace. The English word is cognate with Italian gracile (“delicate, frail; slender, thin”), Portuguese grácil, Spanish grácil (“graceful; delicate; slender”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /???æsa?l/, /-s?l/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /???æ?sa?l/, /???æs?l/, /???e??sa?l/
• Hyphenation: grac?ile

Adjective

gracile (comparative more gracile, superlative most gracile)

1. (also figuratively) Lean, slender, thin.

   Synonyms: (rare) gracilent, lithe, svelte, willowy; see also Thesaurus:slender

   1. (anthropology, specifically) Of a hominid: having a slender body frame.

      Antonym: robust
2. Graceful or gracefully slender.

   Synonyms: catlike, elegant

Derived terms

• gracility
• gracilize

Related terms

• gracilent
• gracilis

Translations

References

Further reading

• gracility on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• Cargile, glacier

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin gracilis. Doublet of grêle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??a.sil/

Adjective

gracile (plural graciles)

1. gracile

Derived terms

• gracilement

Further reading

• “gracile” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Italian

Etymology

From Latin gracilis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??ra.t??i.le/
• Rhymes: -at?ile

Adjective

gracile (plural gracili)

1. delicate, frail, weakly
2. slender, thin

Derived terms

• gracilmente

Related terms

• gracilità

Anagrams

• grecali, legarci

Further reading

• gracile in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Latin

Adjective

gracile

1. nominative neuter singular of gracilis
2. accusative neuter singular of gracilis
3. vocative neuter singular of gracilis