gangly
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of gangly
An Americanism dating back to 1870–75
Explanation
Someone who's tall, long-limbed, and awkward is gangly. Many teenagers go through a gangly phase before they reach their full height and weight. Gangly people are gawky and skinny, and you could also describe an adolescent colt or puppy with long, ungraceful legs as gangly. The adjective gangly is American, its invention often attributed to Mark Twain, who used it in his 1872 book Roughing It, as a variation on the British word with the same meaning, gangling.
Vocabulary lists containing gangly
"The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak, Part Four
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The Sea of Monsters
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Born a Crime
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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.
“We’re a gangly teenager of an industry,” Monahan said.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 10, 2026
"He was very gangly and geeky," recalled Pickering - who had a major musical career of his own with M People and as a DJ, which is recounted in his new book Manchester Must Dance.
From BBC • May 2, 2026
But bassist Garry Tallent never smiled that much, and Springsteen’s onstage foil, the Big Man, Clarence Clemons, was never awkward or gangly the way he is portrayed here; the man was elegance personified.
From Salon • Oct. 28, 2025
Back in Phnom Penh, cuddly babies had turned into gangly teenagers grappling with their complex identities.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 8, 2025
The bleachers swarmed with youth unanchored, unpraised, and convulsed with the dreams of gangly boys and fat boys who wanted to be a part of something with a desperation that was almost palpable and alive.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
