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Synonyms

runty

American  
[ruhn-tee] / ˈrʌn ti /

adjective

runtier, runtiest

  1. stunted; dwarfish.

    The runty puppy seems the most playful of the litter.

Other Word Forms

  • runtiness noun

Etymology

Origin of runty

First recorded in 1800–10; runt + -y 1

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.

Weyerhaeuser, America’s largest private landowner, launched a venture to turn runty trees and sawdust from its mills into a replacement for metallurgical coal used in steel making.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

Such runty particles wouldn’t produce detectable nuclear recoils.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 27, 2022

Is it as heartwarming as a runty, wilted Christmas tree revived by love?

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 3, 2020

Four years earlier, Tisdale had given specially minted medals to the school’s state championship cross-country team, including one to a runty 14-year-old named Chris Villani.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 17, 2017

Compared to the drakon-killer, Bob looked downright runty.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

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.