thin-skinned
Americanadjective
-
having a thin skin.
-
sensitive to criticism, reproach, or rebuff; easily offended; touchy.
a thin-skinned poet.
- Synonyms:
- susceptible, soft, squeamish
adjective
Etymology
Origin of thin-skinned
First recorded in 1590–1600
Explanation
To be thin-skinned is to be sensitive, especially to criticism and slights. Thin-skinned people are quick to take offense. If your skin is literally thin, soft, and tender — like a baby's — than you're going to be hurt more easily if you get scraped or cut. Similarly, a thin-skinned person gets emotionally hurt more often than most people. If you're thin-skinned, you take criticism, rejection, disappointment, and failure very hard. Being left out of anything could be perceived as a major insult. If you forget a thin-skinned person's birthday, they’ll probably hold a grudge.
Vocabulary lists containing thin-skinned
Idioms and Expressions, List 3
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The Golden Goblet
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Amal Unbound
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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.
But when it goes away, so do our nightly doses of Colbert’s affable clowning, the kind that irritates thin-skinned despots in a way other comics can’t quite match.
From Salon ● May 21, 2026
At times, Musk spent his days on the witness stand coming off as thin-skinned.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026
Adcock and Bryan’s beef dates to July, when Adcock slammed Bryan for being thin-skinned and not doing a meet-and-greet appearance with fans after a show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2025
Trump loves a win and he's very thin-skinned.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2025
They are knobby and crooked, thin-skinned, and—like my ruined face—covered with liver spots.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
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.
