adj · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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UK, US:/ˈɡæŋ.ɡli/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:G AE1 NG L IY0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adj
Meaning 1
Tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
adjective satellite
Meaning 2
tall and thin
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: gangling, lanky
Antonyms: none provided
3
adjective satellite
Meaning 3
tall and thin and having long slender limbs
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
a gangling teenager
a lanky kid transformed almost overnight into a handsome young man
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: gangling, lanky, rangy
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
An American English alteration of gangling.
Across languages
Translations
16 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Bulgarian:
слаб
(slab)
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Bulgarian:
тънък
(tǎnǎk)
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Cebuano:
lagwis
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Danish:
ranglet
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Dutch:
slungelig
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Finnish:
hoikka
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Finnish:
hontelo
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
French:
dégingandé
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Italian:
spilungone
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Italian:
allampanato
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Norwegian Bokmål:
hengslete
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Russian:
долговязый
(dolgovjazyj)
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Spanish:
ñango
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Spanish:
ñengo
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Spanish:
ñengue
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness
Swedish:
gänglig
— tall and thin, especially so as to cause physical awkwardness