ˈslendə(r) adjective
( usually -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English slendre, sclendre
1.
a.
(1) : spare in frame or flesh : not fleshy or large of bone
a man of slender build, being only five feet, five inches in height, and weighing less than one hundred pounds — D.Y.Thomas
especially : gracefully slight
she was like a feather in my arms, so slender , so ethereal — Jack London
(2) : not robust : frail
as boy and girl neighbors, each of slender health, they had enjoyed … playing the piano together — M.A.D.Howe
b.
(1) : thin or insubstantial in proportion to breadth
a slender volume … of twenty-one pages — V.L.Parrington
a slender partition wall
(2) : small or narrow in circumference or width in proportion to the length or height
a slender perpendicular steel framework tower — American Guide Series: Oregon
especially : delicately elongated in pleasing proportions
a graceful portico of slender columns — American Guide Series: North Carolina
(3) : excessively thin and elongated : tenuous
the new arrivals took over the defensive sector south of the airfield where the slender line … had been punctured — H.L.Merillat
c. : limited in extent, size, quantity, capacity, or scope
published a slender list of generalized headings — John Lawler
his critical powers were very slender — G.C.Sellery
2.
a.
(1) : inadequate or barely adequate in quantity or supply : scanty , meager
compelled by slender family finances to leave school early — E.M.Lustgarten
(2) : barely adequate in dimensions or scope : narrow , scant
elected by a slender margin
a few attempts had been made to deepen and embank the natural streams, but with slender success — T.B.Macaulay
b.
(1) : inadequate to justify an inference, opinion, or action
tended to start from some observation … and then elaborate on this slender foundation a theory of the universe — Benjamin Farrington
(2) : having slight or inadequate grounds or justification
a slender hope
c. : slight in significance, seriousness, or complexity
the material is slighter, the texture more slender , and the formal exigencies shorter than the full-size sonata — Norman Demuth
3.
a.
(1) : front — used of a vowel in some Celtic languages
(2) : having the allophone that characterizes it when it is pronounced with a front vowel — used of a consonant in some Celtic languages
b. : characterized by or consisting of a tone that lacks fullness or volume
fortunate in his recordings, for his rather slender voice reproduces exceptionally well — P.L.Miller
Synonyms: see thin