asthenic
Americanadjective
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of, relating to, or characterized by asthenia; weak.
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(of a physical type) having a slight build or slender body structure.
noun
adjective
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of, relating to, or having asthenia; weak
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(in constitutional psychology) referring to a physique characterized by long limbs and a small trunk: claimed to be associated with a schizoid personality See also somatotype
noun
Etymology
Origin of asthenic
1780–90; < Greek asthenikós, equivalent to asthen- ( asthenia ) + -ikos -ic
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.
In a sense, this fear of drama comes off as latter generations’ asthenic corrective to the unrestrained classical cinephilic embrace of robust Hollywood-centric energies.
From The New Yorker • Feb. 2, 2016
Whimsy is asthenic fantasy, a fragile, elusive quality difficult to render but easy to shatter into sentimentality.
From Time Magazine Archive
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The asthenic Met batters, none of whom finished the regular season above .300, banged out a hearty 23 runs.
From Time Magazine Archive
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Clustered mainly in Manhattan's Greenwich Village, off-Broadway's theaters exert the faintly exotic double lure of intellectual climbing and Bohemian slumming among asthenic men with beards and girls with Lady Godiva hairdos.
From Time Magazine Archive
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Murchison has proposed for it the name of simple asthenic fever.
From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various
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.