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boniness

boniness

7.9
Being very thin with bones clearly showing, often from illness or lack of food
  • noun
  • /ˈboʊniˌnəs/
translation icon : delgadez
  • The model's boniness was emphasized by the tight-fitting dress, highlighting her sharp collarbones.

Examples

  • She ran smack against a stretch of tallness and boniness, overlaid by warm flannel.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • The boniness of the old woman's hands made Joanna's breasts look absurdly round and swollen, almost pornographic, as though they might burst out of her bra and tank shirt.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • His extreme boniness was a clear sign of malnutrition, with his ribs visibly protruding.

  • After months of illness, her boniness became alarming, and friends urged her to seek help.

Synonyms

thinness
vsboniness
2 2.3

A person who has very little body fat

is narrower, stressing bones showing from severe flesh loss
emaciation
vsboniness
  • Specialized
1 8.6

Extreme thinness from not enough food or illness

stresses visible bones more than the purely medical severity
gauntness
vsboniness
1 8.4

A very thin appearance because of illness or not having enough food

emphasizes the skeleton showing rather than only extreme thinness
scrawniness
vsboniness
1 8.2

Being very thin with little body fat

stresses sharp bone visibility rather than a merely thin look
skinniness
vsboniness
1 4.9

Being very thin in a way that looks unhealthy

implies bones are more clearly seen than in general thinness
leanness
vsboniness
1 3.4

Having little body fat and being thin

is more negative, stressing unhealthy hollowed bones rather than fitness
bonyness
vsboniness
8.8

A state of being very thin so that bones show clearly

is the alternative spelling for the same condition
wasteness
vsboniness
  • Archaic
9.9

A very thin, weak body caused by illness or lack of food

highlights bones showing more than the general wasting process
maceration
vsboniness
  • Archaic
9.6

A very thin, weak body after long illness or not eating

focuses on current visible bones rather than the ongoing process

Antonyms

1 6.6

A soft, plump quality caused by extra fat or tissue

1 2.4

A soft, rounded fullness, like a kitten's body or a cheek

How Thin

emaciation
  • Specialized
1 8.6
boniness
7.9
thinness
2 2.3
plumpness
1 2.4
overweight
146 2.2
obesity
146 3.9

Surface Forms

boniness singular
boninesses plural

Morphology

boniness = bony (transparent) = bone + y + ness

Formed regularly from the adjective 'bony' with the nominalizing suffix '-ness', giving the state or quality of being bony.

Etymology

Boniness comes from the simple word bone plus the parts -y ('full of') and -ness ('the state of'). So boniness means the state of being 'full of bones', when someone or an animal is very thin and the bones show.