Thin vs. Skinny — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on November 1, 2023
Thin describes slightness in form or proportion; skinny often implies an unhealthily low amount of body fat.
Difference Between Thin and Skinny
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Thin often refers to a slim shape or fine texture and can be used for objects or people without a negative connotation. It suggests something less bulky or wide than usual, indicating a narrower dimension that is often perceived as graceful or delicate. Thin can imply an elegance or slenderness, like thin fabric or a thin model, where the lack of mass is seen as positive or neutral.
Skinny carries a more specific reference to people, and unlike thin, it can imply a lack of body fat that suggests a possible deficiency or unhealthiness. It is often used in a colloquial sense to describe someone who is very slim, sometimes excessively so. Skinny can have a negative connotation, suggesting that someone is less robust or that there is an insufficiency of muscle or flesh.
While thin can be a property of things as diverse as paper, air, or a slice of cake, suggesting a refinement or a reduction in thickness, skinny is almost exclusively used to describe a physical condition in living beings, usually humans. The term skinny rarely describes objects or materials unless metaphorically, to highlight extreme slenderness.
The term thin may be used in positive, neutral, or negative contexts, depending on whether the reduction in size or volume is desirable, as in thinning one's waistline, or undesirable, as in thinning hair. Skinny, however, is more often used negatively or informally to point out someone’s appearance that might be perceived as less than ideal due to being too thin.
In aesthetics, thin is a word that can describe desirable traits such as thin lines in drawing or a thin profile in design, embodying sleekness and simplicity. Skinny, however, is seldom associated with objects in aesthetic discussions and is more confined to informal speech about body image, often carrying undertones of being overly thin.
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Comparison Chart
Connotation
Neutral or positive
Often negative
Usage Context
Objects or people
Primarily people
Implication
Less bulk, refined
Extremely slim, potentially unhealthy
Grammatical Usage
Adjective, sometimes adverb
Adjective
Variability
Physical and abstract uses
Limited to physical description
Compare with Definitions
Thin
Slight in form or thickness
She sliced the cheese thin for the sandwiches.
Skinny
Very lean or slight; emaciated
He got really skinny after his long illness.
Thin
Narrow in width or diameter
The thin wire was barely visible.
Skinny
Insufficient or meager
The cat's skinny tail was an unusual trait.
Thin
With opposite surfaces or sides that are close or relatively close together
A thin line of paint
Thin slices of bread
Skinny
Extremely narrow or slender
That alley is too skinny for a car.
Thin
Having little, or too little, flesh or fat on the body
A thin, gawky adolescent
Skinny
Containing little fat
She preferred skinny lattes with non-fat milk.
Thin
Having few parts or members relative to the area covered or filled; sparse
A depressingly thin crowd
His hair was going thin
Skinny
Having very little bodily flesh or fat, often unattractively so; very thin.
Thin
(of a liquid substance) not containing much solid; flowing freely
Thin soup
Skinny
(informal) thin, generally in a negative sense (as opposed to slim, which is thin in a positive sense).
Her recent weight loss has made her look rather skinny than slender
Thin
Lacking substance or quality; weak or inadequate
The evidence is rather thin
Skinny
Having reduced fat or calories.
Thin
With little thickness or depth
A thin-sliced loaf
Cut the ham as thin as possible
Skinny
Naked; nude (chiefly used in the phrase skinny dipping).
Thin
Make or become less dense, crowded, or numerous
The trees began to thin out
The remorseless fire of archers thinned their ranks
Skinny
(of clothing) tight-fitting
Skinny jeans
Thin
Make or become smaller in thickness
Their effect in thinning the ozone layer is probably slowing the global warming trend
Skinny
(golf) thin
Thin
Hit (a ball) above its centre.
Skinny
(colloquial) The details or facts; especially, those obtained by gossip or rumor.
She called to get the skinny on the latest goings-on in the club.
Thin
Relatively small in extent from one surface to the opposite, usually in the smallest solid dimension
A thin book.
Skinny
A state of nakedness; nudity.
Thin
Not great in diameter or cross section; fine
Thin wire.
Skinny
(informal) A low-fat serving of coffee.
Thin
Having little bodily flesh or fat; lean or slender.
Skinny
(nonstandard) A skinny being.
Thin
Not dense or concentrated; sparse
The thin vegetation of the plateau.
Skinny
(transitive) To reduce or cut down.
Thin
More rarefied than normal
Thin air.
Skinny
Consisting, or chiefly consisting, of skin; wanting flesh.
He holds him with a skinny hand.
Thin
Flowing with relative ease; not viscous
A thin oil.
Skinny
Confidential information about a topic or person;
He wanted the inside skinny on the new partner
Thin
Watery
Thin soup.
Skinny
Having unattractive thinness;
A child with skinny freckled legs
A long scrawny neck
Thin
Sparsely supplied or provided; scanty
A thin menu.
Skinny
Informal or colloquial for thin
Those jeans make you look skinny.
Thin
Having a low number of transactions
Thin trading in the stock market.
Thin
Lacking force or substance; flimsy
A thin attempt.
Thin
Lacking resonance or fullness; tinny
The piano had a thin sound.
Thin
Lacking radiance or intensity
Thin light.
Thin
Not having enough photographic density or contrast to make satisfactory prints. Used of a negative.
Thin
In a thin manner
Spread the varnish thin if you don't want it to wrinkle.
Thin
So as to be thin
Cut the cheese thin.
Thin
To make or become thin or thinner.
Thin
Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.
Thin plate of metal;
Thin paper;
Thin board;
Thin covering
Thin
Very narrow in all diameters; having a cross section that is small in all directions.
Thin wire;
Thin string
Thin
Having little body fat or flesh; slim; slender; lean; gaunt.
Thin person
Thin
Of low viscosity or low specific gravity.
Water is thinner than honey.
Thin
Scarce; not close, crowded, or numerous; not filling the space.
The trees of a forest are thin; the corn or grass is thin.
Thin
(golf) Describing a poorly played golf shot where the ball is struck by the bottom part of the club head. See fat, shank, toe.
Thin
Lacking body or volume; small; feeble; not full.
Thin
Slight; small; slender; flimsy; superficial; inadequate; not sufficient for a covering.
A thin disguise
Thin
(aviation) Of a route: relatively little used.
Thin
Poor; scanty; without money or success.
Thin
(philately) A loss or tearing of paper from the back of a stamp, although not sufficient to create a complete hole.
Thin
Any food produced or served in thin slices.
Chocolate mint thins
Potato thins
Wheat thins
Thin
(transitive) To make thin or thinner.
Thin
(intransitive) To become thin or thinner.
The crowds thinned after the procession had passed: there was nothing more to see.
Thin
To dilute.
Thin
To remove some plants or parts of plants in order to improve the growth of what remains.
Thin
Not thickly or closely; in a scattered state.
Seed sown thin
Thin
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.
Thin
Rare; not dense or thick; - applied to fluids or soft mixtures; as, thin blood; thin broth; thin air.
In the day, when the air is more thin.
Satan, bowing lowHis gray dissimulation, disappeared,Into thin air diffused.
Thin
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.
Ferrara is very large, but extremely thin of people.
Thin
Not full or well grown; wanting in plumpness.
Seven thin ears . . . blasted with the east wind.
Thin
Not stout; slim; slender; lean; gaunt; as, a person becomes thin by disease.
Thin
Wanting in body or volume; small; feeble; not full.
Thin, hollow sounds, and lamentable screams.
Thin
Slight; small; slender; flimsy; wanting substance or depth or force; superficial; inadequate; not sufficient for a covering; as, a thin disguise.
My tale is done, for my wit is but thin.
Thin
Not thickly or closely; in a seattered state; as, seed sown thin.
Spain is thin sown of people.
Thin
To make thin (in any of the senses of the adjective).
Thin
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.
Thin
Lose thickness; become thin or thinner
Thin
Make thin or thinner;
Thin the solution
Thin
Lessen the strength or flavor of a solution or mixture;
Cut bourbon
Thin
Take off weight
Thin
Of relatively small extent from one surface to the opposite or in cross section;
Thin wire
A thin chiffon blouse
A thin book
A thin layer of paint
Thin
Lacking excess flesh;
You can't be too rich or too thin
Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look
Thin
Very narrow;
A thin line across the page
Thin
Having little substance or significance;
A flimsy excuse
Slight evidence
A tenuous argument
A thin plot
Thin
Not dense;
A thin beard
Trees were sparse
Thin
Relatively thin in consistency or low in density; not viscous;
Air is thin at high altitudes
A thin soup
Skimmed milk is much thinner than whole milk
Thin oil
Thin
(of sound) lacking resonance or volume;
A thin feeble cry
Thin
Lacking spirit or sincere effort;
A thin smile
Thin
Without viscosity;
The blood was flowing thin
Thin
Of low density or concentration
The fog was thin enough to see through this morning.
Thin
Scarce or limited
His patience was wearing thin.
Thin
Fine or slender in quality or construction
She wore a thin bracelet on her wrist.
Common Curiosities
Can thin refer to density?
Yes, like thin air or a thin liquid.
Do both words refer to appearance?
Yes, but skinny is more specifically about body appearance.
Is thin always negative?
No, thin can be positive, neutral, or negative depending on context.
Can objects be described as skinny?
Rarely, it's usually reserved for describing living beings.
Is there a skinny equivalent in fashion?
Yes, skinny jeans or skinny ties, emphasizing narrow style.
Are the terms interchangeable?
Not always, due to their connotative differences.
Is skinny a formal term?
No, it's more colloquial and informal.
Is skinny ever positive?
It can be, but it's less common and often context-dependent.
Can thin be used in art?
Yes, like thin lines or a thin brushstroke.
Is skinny used in medical terms?
Not typically, medical terms would use "underweight" or "thin."
Can skinny be used to describe resources?
Informally, yes, like "a skinny budget."
Does thin imply healthiness?
Not necessarily, it can simply refer to size or proportion.
Can animals be called skinny?
Yes, particularly if they appear undernourished.
Can businesses be described as thin?
Yes, like a thin market.
Does thin have a verb form?
Yes, "to thin" something, like thinning paint. Skinny does not have a verb form.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
