lanky

Some common synonyms of lanky are gaunt, lank, lean, rawboned, scrawny, skinny, and spare. While all these words mean "thin because of an absence of excess flesh," lanky suggests awkwardness and loose-jointedness as well as thinness.

Although the words gaunt and lanky have much in common, gaunt implies marked thinness or emaciation as from overwork or suffering.

The synonyms lank and lanky are sometimes interchangeable, but lank implies tallness as well as leanness.

The words lean and lanky can be used in similar contexts, but lean stresses lack of fat and of curving contours.

While in some cases nearly identical to lanky, rawboned suggests a large ungainly build without implying undernourishment.

Both scrawny and skinny imply an extreme leanness that suggests deficient strength and vitality.

The meanings of spare and lanky largely overlap; however, spare suggests leanness from abstemious living or constant exercise.