thready

American  

[thred-ee] / ˈθrɛd i /

adjective

threadier, threadiest

1. consisting of or resembling a thread or threads; fibrous; filamentous.

2. stringy or viscid, as a liquid.

3. (of the pulse) thin and feeble.

4. (of sound, the voice, etc.) lacking fullness; weak; feeble.

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thready British  

/ ˈθrɛdɪ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a thread or threads

2. med (of the pulse) barely perceptible; weak; fine

3. sounding thin, weak, or reedy

   a thready tenor

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Other Word Forms

• threadiness noun

Etymology

Origin of thready

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; thread, -y ¹

Example Sentences

Their narrow bodies and thready legs look like racers' shells and oars.

From Scientific American • Aug. 18, 2023

It’s harder to find original posts from regular people, unless your the Instagram connections you ported over happen to be a chatty — or thready — bunch.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 14, 2023

It uses a lab-grown material made from a thready, branching fungus called mycelium, grown in California and sent to France to be tanned.

From Los Angeles Times • May 7, 2021

At its worst, it can be thready and attenuated, hooting like a tin whistle, an appraisal with which countertenors of bygone days were often saddled.

From New York Times • Apr. 23, 2016

We passed the giant Uniroyal tire and the thready woods of Inkster.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides