paper-thin
Americanadjective
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extremely thin.
a paper-thin razor blade.
-
inadequate or unconvincing; flimsy.
a paper-thin excuse.
Etymology
Origin of paper-thin
First recorded in 1925–30
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 Tegucigalpa, the nation’s capital from which Hernández left in chains in 2022, Asfura held a paper-thin lead Monday in Honduras’s presidential race.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 2, 2025
Revealing a boundary as fragile as this paper-thin clay layer required painstaking work.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 30, 2025
He has argued that Gascón’s analysis of the case was paper-thin, questioned the validity of their self-defense claims and repeatedly insisted the brothers had lied about the circumstances of the shooting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2025
Rudd and Ortega’s characters are so paper-thin that viewers can see right through them, getting a look at what will come next before Elliot and Ridley do.
From Salon ● Apr. 4, 2025
He has a MacBook, paper-thin, open in front of him.
From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
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.
