Skip to main content
spindleshanks

spindleshanks

9.9
A person with very thin, long legs
  • noun
  • Informal
translation icon : piernas de espagueti
  • Everyone called him spindleshanks because of his long, thin legs.

Examples

  • With her spindleshanks, she was often picked first for basketball.

  • The tall boy with the spindleshanks struggled to keep up with his friends.

  • And Spindleshanks.

    Fiction book (1995)

Synonyms

thin person
vsspindleshanks
4 2.1

A person who has very little body fat and looks underweight

emphasizes long thin legs in addition to general slimness
beanpole
vsspindleshanks
  • Offensive
4 7.5

A very tall thin person who looks awkward

focuses on long thin legs without implying tall height
stickman
vsspindleshanks
  • Offensive
1 8.2

A very thin person whose clothes hang loosely

is more descriptive and highlights long thin legs rather than joking
spindlelegs
vsspindleshanks
  • Informal
9.9

Long thin legs that look delicate

also stresses a very thin whole body as well as long legs
scrag
vsspindleshanks
  • Offensive
9.9

A very thin, bony person

is less pejorative and highlights long thin legs

Antonyms

20 2.8

Short and wide in body with a solid build

How Thin

beanpole
  • Offensive
4 7.5
spindleshanks
  • Informal
9.9
thin person
4 2.1

Surface Forms

spindleshanks singular
spindleshanks plural

Morphology

spindleshanks = spindle + shank (transparent) = spindle + shank + s

The compound literally describes legs (shanks) resembling a spindle (thin rod), so the meaning is directly inferable from the components.

Etymology

Spindleshanks comes from spindle ('a thin rod') and shanks ('legs'), so it paints a picture of someone with long, thin legs. So, to call someone a spindleshanks is to say they are very thin and have long legs.