muscular
Americanadjective
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of or relating to muscle or the muscles.
muscular strain.
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dependent on or affected by the muscles.
muscular strength.
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having well-developed muscles; brawny.
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vigorously and forcefully expressed, executed, performed, etc., as if by the use of a great deal of muscular power.
a muscular response to terrorism.
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broad and energetic, especially with the implication that subtlety and grace are lacking.
a muscular style.
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reflected in physical activity and work.
a muscular religion.
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Informal. having or showing power; powerful.
a muscular vehicle.
adjective
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having well-developed muscles; brawny
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of, relating to, or consisting of muscle
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of muscular
Explanation
If you're strong and athletic, with powerfully developed muscles, you can describe yourself as muscular. Weight lifters are muscular, and so is the Incredible Hulk. If your grandmother has worked as a cattle farmer her entire life, she is probably pretty muscular too. Anyone with strong muscles can be described as muscular. In the 1600's, the word simply meant "pertaining to muscles," but by the mid-1700's, muscular specifically referred to well-developed muscles. The root word is the Latin musculus, which, oddly enough, means both "muscle" and "little mouse."
Vocabulary lists containing muscular
Vigorous Vocab: Synonyms for "Strong"
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STAAR Biology: Biological Processes and Systems
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Organisms and Environments 5: Human Systems
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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.
Jane Campbell, a peer in the House of Lords upper chamber, struggles to speak naturally due to spinal muscular atrophy, a condition that worsens over time.
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
Hincapie has suffered from muscular issues this term and now faces an anxious wait to discover whether he requires another spell on the sidelines.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
“I also heard from women who were already athletic and muscular who said it made them feel seen and accepted.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
That limitation has made it much harder to study serious diseases involving the brain stem, including spinal muscular atrophy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 21, 2026
He stood taller, puffing out his muscular chest even more.
From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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.
