wispy
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- wispily adverb
- wispiness noun
Etymology
Origin of wispy
Explanation
Wispy describes something that's vague or flimsy. If your explanation of why you didn't help your mom paint the kitchen was weak and didn't help her understand your reasons, you'd call that a wispy explanation. Wispy can be used more literally to describe things that are physically not very substantial, like the delicate necklace that breaks as soon as you wear it. A person who looks weak and thin could also be described as wispy. A wisp is something flimsy, but in its original meaning, it was a handful of hay or grass — again, something very light.
Vocabulary lists containing wispy
The Lightning Thief
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List 7
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Refugee
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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.
"You can't sculpt and cast something that is..." he paused, trying to find the right word, "wispy."
From Barron's • Feb. 7, 2026
With his wispy goatee beard and baby-faced features, he looks even younger than he is.
From BBC • Oct. 23, 2025
And the clattering syncopated loop that repeats through “Oblivion” is there mostly as a contrast to the wispy and diaphanous vocals, which are so thin and leavened with reverb that they threaten to float away.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 21, 2025
The scenes follow her attempts to shake off her dependency on Xavier, gliding in an elegant but wispy and uncentered way between memories, philosophical maunderings and embellishments of imagined interactions.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025
The crow resembled more a humpy ball with straggling tail feathers, feathers as wispy and disordered as Gwystyl’s cobwebby hair.
From "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander
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.
