Category:Slender

Slen"der, a. [compar. Slenderer; superl. Slenderest.] Etym: [oe. Slendre, sclendre, fr. Od. slinder thin, slender, perhaps through a French form; cf. Od. slinderen, slidderen, to creep; perh. akin to e. Slide.]

1. Small or narrow in proportion to the length or the height; not Thick; slim; as, a slender stem or stalk of a plant. "a slender, Choleric man." Chaucer. She, as a veil down to the slender waist, her unadorned golden Tresses wore. Milton.

2. Weak; feeble; not strong; slight; as, slender hope; a slender Constitution. Mighty hearts are held in slender chains. Pope. They have inferred much from slender premises. J. H. Newman. The slender utterance of the consonants. J. Byrne.

3. Moderate; trivial; inconsiderable; slight; as, a man of slender Intelligence. A slender degree of patience will enable him to enjoy both the humor And the pathos. Sir w. Scott.

4. Small; inadequate; meager; pitiful; as, slender means of support; A slender pittance. Frequent begging makes slender alms. Fuller.

5. Spare; abstemious; frugal; as, a slender diet. The good ostorius often deigned to grace my slender table with his Presence. Philips.

6. (phon.)

Defn: uttered with a thin tone; -- the opposite of broad; as, the Slender vowels long e and i. -- slen"der*ly, adv. -- slen"der*ness, n.