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• slim
  slim

  adjective

  slender, as in girth or form; slight in build or structure.
• Slim
  Slim

  noun

  the E African name for AIDS

slim

American  

[slim] / slɪm /

adjective

• slimmer,
  comparative
• slimmest
  superlative

1. slender, as in girth or form; slight in build or structure.

   Synonyms:

   thin

   Antonyms:

   fat

2. poor or inferior.

   a slim chance; a slim excuse.

3. small or inconsiderable; meager; scanty.

   a slim income.

   Synonyms:

   paltry, trivial, trifling, insignificant

   Antonyms:

   abundant, considerable

4. sized for the thinner than average person.

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verb (used with object)

slimmed, slimming

1. to make slim.

verb (used without object)

slimmed, slimming

1. to become slim.

2. Chiefly British. to try to become more slender, especially by dieting.

noun

1. a garment size meant for a thin person.

verb phrase

1. slim down

   1. to lose weight, especially intentionally.

   2. (of a business) to reduce operating expenses; economize.

slim ¹ British  

/ slɪm /

adjective

1. small in width relative to height or length

2. small in amount or quality

   slim chances of success

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verb

1. to make or become slim, esp by diets and exercise

2. to reduce or decrease or cause to be reduced or decreased

Slim ² British  

/ slɪm /

noun

1. the E African name for AIDS

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Slim ³ British  

/ slɪm /

noun

1. William Joseph , 1st Viscount. 1891–1970, British field marshal, who commanded (1943–45) the 14th Army in the reconquest of Burma (now called Myanmar) from the Japanese; governor general of Australia (1953–60)

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Synonym Usage

See slender.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• slimmer
  noun
• slimness
  noun
• unslimness
  noun
• unslim
  adjective
• unslimmed
  adjective
• slimly
  adverb
• unslimly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Adjectives

• slimmer
  comparative
• slimmest
  superlative

Etymology

Origin of slim

1650–60; < Dutch slim sly, (earlier) crooked (cognate with German schlimm bad, (earlier) crooked)

Explanation

Anything slim is thin or narrow. So, your sister may be considered slim, and you could also have "a slim chance" of winning the lottery. Slim people are slender, and slim things are usually delicate, like a slim watch band. You can also use slim to describe a margin or a chance: "There was only a slim likelihood that the home team would win this game." Back in the early 1800s, to slim meant "to do one's work carelessly," and in the seventeenth century, the adjective was also used to mean "sly or crafty."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

slim Slim slimmer slimmest slimmed slimming

"Monopoles are single-pole structures designed to carry significant electricity network capacity within a slim and compact profile," it explained.

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

So the chances of this happening in any meaningful way are slim at best.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026

Their slim bodies and long front legs may have helped them travel efficiently through the open landscapes of Pleistocene North America.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 8, 2026

The slim book explores American mysticism and a moral framework in ruins as his clan zigzags from Kansas to South Carolina, Illinois and elsewhere.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Inside the foyer, there was only a slim iron coat rack and a short table where house keys sat.

From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles

The maker of Slim Jim and Healthy Choice has seen its shares slide by 26% over the past 12 months.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Conagra is known for grocery-aisle staples like Slim Jim, Reddi-wip, and Marie Callender’s.

From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026

Slim and silver-haired, he started out as an investment banker working with oil-and-gas businesses and was elevated to run the energy banking group by Todd Maclin, a former executive.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

There’s an old gambler’s aphorism beloved by wise souls from Amarillo Slim to Warren Buffett that warns: “If you look around the poker table and can’t identify the mark, it’s you.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

Slim came directly to George and sat down beside him, sat very close to him.

From "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck

Just inside the door, there was a flimsy mannequin with the face of a much younger, slimmer Trump, wearing a red “Trump 2028” hat, a dark suit, and a signature red tie.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

Soon, the fun fan shot was replaced by one of those grim before-and-after shots: An obese Goodman in his 30s and the slimmer Goodman in his 70s.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

Responding to the watchdog, Jaded London argued it was "not clear" the model was holding a cigarette because it was slimmer than normal and "did not appear to be lit".

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

The results pile pressure on the beleaguered group, which has been suffering from slimmer margins from the sales of electric cars, US tariffs and above all intense Chinese competition.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

Papa himself never greeted Papa-Nnukwu, never visited him, but he sent slim wads of naira through Kevin or through one of our umunna members, slimmer wads than he gave Kevin as a Christmas bonus.

From "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Keiko Fujimori won the June 7 presidential runoff by the slimmest of margins, outpolling leftist Roberto Sanchez by fewer than 50,000 votes out of the more than 18 million ballots cast, the final results showed.

From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026

Overall, reports Roll Call, “in a Senate newly under Republican control and a House held by the slimmest of GOP majorities, lawmakers cast more votes last year than any other since the pandemic.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

With Sri Lanka chasing down the target with ease, the Australians are left clinging to only the slimmest mathematical hope and will watch nervously as Zimbabwe face Ireland on Tuesday.

From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2026

In 2024, Gray won his seat by 187 votes, the slimmest margin of any race in the country.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 18, 2025

He couldn’t not go, not now they had found the entrance to the Chamber, not if there was even the faintest, slimmest, wildest chance that Ginny might be alive.

From "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" by J. K. Rowling

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman cut deeper into the lead of reality television personality Spencer Pratt on Saturday, as his lead slimmed to just a single percentage point.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2026

Rent eats up more than half of Imeh’s take-home pay, which was slimmed after a credit-card company started garnishing part of her wages to pay off her card debts, she said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 8, 2026

Though the fest itself has been cut down from 11 days to six, the amount of talent jammed into that week doesn’t appear to have slimmed down much at all.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 20, 2026

Pre-tax profit excluding one-off costs for the slimmed down business was £108m for the year to the end of August, WH Smith said.

From BBC ● Dec. 19, 2025

She’d slimmed down and shot up and started worrying about clothes.

From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

As part of the new changes, McKinsey is also slimming down its board, known internally as its shareholders council.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

Nestlé is trying to end the slump by winning back market share and slimming down its sprawling business.

From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026

Brides aren’t the only ones slimming down before their big day, Ianieri-Salerno said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 25, 2026

J&J spent the past few years slimming down its business to focus on six categories, one of which is immunology drugs.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 14, 2026

I’ve worn black today, because I’ve heard so often that it’s supposed to be slimming.

From "Every Day" by David Levithan