Sheer vs. Thin — What's the Difference?

Nothing other than; unmitigated (used for emphasis)

With opposite surfaces or sides that are close or relatively close together

(especially of a cliff or wall) perpendicular or nearly so

Having little, or too little, flesh or fat on the body

(of a fabric) very thin; diaphanous

Having few parts or members relative to the area covered or filled; sparse

Perpendicularly

(of a liquid substance) not containing much solid; flowing freely

Completely; right

Lacking substance or quality; weak or inadequate

A very fine or diaphanous fabric or article

With little thickness or depth

A sudden deviation from a course, especially by a boat.

Make or become less dense, crowded, or numerous

The upward slope of a ship's lines towards the bow and stern.

Make or become smaller in thickness

(typically of a boat) swerve or change course quickly

Hit (a ball) above its centre.

To swerve or cause to swerve from a course.

Relatively small in extent from one surface to the opposite, usually in the smallest solid dimension

A swerving or deviating course.

Not great in diameter or cross section; fine

The upward curve or amount of upward curve of the longitudinal lines of a ship's hull as viewed from the side.

Having little bodily flesh or fat; lean or slender.

The position in which a ship at anchor is maintained in order to keep it clear of the anchor.

Not dense or concentrated; sparse

One that is sheer, such as a curtain.

More rarefied than normal

Thin, fine, and translucent

Flowing with relative ease; not viscous

Completely such, without qualification or exception

Watery

Free from admixture or adulterants; unmixed

Sparsely supplied or provided; scanty

Considered or operating apart from anything else

Having a low number of transactions

Almost perpendicular; steep

Lacking force or substance; flimsy

Almost perpendicularly.

Lacking resonance or fullness; tinny

Completely; altogether.

Lacking radiance or intensity

(textiles) Very thin or transparent.

Not having enough photographic density or contrast to make satisfactory prints. Used of a negative.

(obsolete) Pure in composition; unmixed; unadulterated.

In a thin manner

(by extension) Downright; complete; pure.

So as to be thin

Used to emphasize the amount or degree of something.

To make or become thin or thinner.

Very steep; almost vertical or perpendicular.

Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.

(archaic) Clean; quite; at once.

Very narrow in all diameters; having a cross section that is small in all directions.

A sheer curtain or fabric.

Having little body fat or flesh; slim; slender; lean; gaunt.

(nautical) The curve of the main deck or gunwale from bow to stern.

Of low viscosity or low specific gravity.

(nautical) An abrupt swerve from the course of a ship.

Scarce; not close, crowded, or numerous; not filling the space.

To swerve from a course.

(golf) Describing a poorly played golf shot where the ball is struck by the bottom part of the club head. See fat, shank, toe.

(obsolete) To shear.

Lacking body or volume; small; feeble; not full.

Bright; clear; pure; unmixed.

Slight; small; slender; flimsy; superficial; inadequate; not sufficient for a covering.

Very thin or transparent; - applied to fabrics; as, sheer muslin.

(aviation) Of a route: relatively little used.

Being only what it seems to be; obvious; simple; mere; downright; as, sheer folly; sheer nonsense.

Poor; scanty; without money or success.

Stright up and down; vertical; prpendicular.

(philately) A loss or tearing of paper from the back of a stamp, although not sufficient to create a complete hole.

Clean; quite; at once.

Any food produced or served in thin slices.

To shear.

(transitive) To make thin or thinner.

To decline or deviate from the line of the proper course; to turn aside; to swerve; as, a ship sheers from her course; a horse sheers at a bicycle.

(intransitive) To become thin or thinner.

The longitudinal upward curvature of the deck, gunwale, and lines of a vessel, as when viewed from the side.

To dilute.

A turn or change in a course.

To remove some plants or parts of plants in order to improve the growth of what remains.

Shears See Shear.

Not thickly or closely; in a scattered state.

Turn sharply; change direction abruptly;

Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite; as, a thin plate of metal; thin paper; a thin board; a thin covering.

Cause to sheer;

Rare; not dense or thick; - applied to fluids or soft mixtures; as, thin blood; thin broth; thin air.

Complete and without restriction or qualification; sometimes used informally as intensifiers;

Not close; not crowded; not filling the space; not having the individuals of which the thing is composed in a close or compact state; hence, not abundant; as, the trees of a forest are thin; the corn or grass is thin.

Not mixed with extraneous elements;

Not full or well grown; wanting in plumpness.

Very steep; having a prominent and almost vertical front;

Not stout; slim; slender; lean; gaunt; as, a person becomes thin by disease.

So thin as to transmit light;

Wanting in body or volume; small; feeble; not full.

Straight up or down without a break

Slight; small; slender; flimsy; wanting substance or depth or force; superficial; inadequate; not sufficient for a covering; as, a thin disguise.

Directly;

Not thickly or closely; in a seattered state; as, seed sown thin.

To make thin (in any of the senses of the adjective).

To grow or become thin; - used with some adverbs, as out, away, etc.; as, geological strata thin out, i. e., gradually diminish in thickness until they disappear.

Lose thickness; become thin or thinner

Make thin or thinner;

Lessen the strength or flavor of a solution or mixture;

Take off weight

Of relatively small extent from one surface to the opposite or in cross section;

Lacking excess flesh;

Very narrow;

Having little substance or significance;

Not dense;

Relatively thin in consistency or low in density; not viscous;

(of sound) lacking resonance or volume;

Lacking spirit or sincere effort;

Without viscosity;