emaciated
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of emaciated
Explanation
Someone who is dangerously skinny and skeletal-looking can be described as emaciated. It's probably how you'd start to look after a few weeks in the wilderness with only berries and bugs for dinner. The adjective emaciated evolved from the Latin emaciatus, meaning to “make lean, waste away.” An emaciated person or animal isn't just thin. They're bony, gaunt, and most likely undernourished, often from illness. So if an emaciated stray cat shows up on your doorstep, give it a bowl of milk and maybe pay a visit to the vet.
Vocabulary lists containing emaciated
List 3
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A Long Walk to Water
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The Hunger Games
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On Wednesday, the government had released photos of him hooked up to a ventilator and visibly emaciated, after acknowledging that his situation was "critical."
From Barron's • May 31, 2026
The remaining eight "appeared emaciated" and later succumbed to "poor health issues", the report states.
From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026
Officers searched him and found two emaciated and potentially sedated orange-fronted parakeets — the victims of an alleged botched smuggling attempt — stuffed in his underwear, according to court documents.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 30, 2026
Oli Barrington, a trustee at the exotic animal charity, said the dogs, who were found emaciated, were now in a "comfortable, safe and recovering from the ordeal".
From BBC • Jan. 11, 2026
Benjamin Rush emerged from the epidemic emaciated, feeble, and haunted.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
