variants
also boney
1
as in thin
having a noticeably small amount of body fat
that bony old horse may have been deliberately starved
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in barren
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
bony hills from which sheepherders eked out a meager existence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bony
Riders follow the instructions of Redbeard (given via onboard audio), which include finding and counting gems along the shore, looking out for bony opponents in Skeleton Valley and participating in a seaworthy singalong near the finale.
—
Dewayne Bevil, Orlando Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2023
Santiago Calatrava is best known for bridges that leap and budgets that soar, for vast and bony white-steel structures that evoke high-tech ruins of the future and cause fiscal ruin in the present.
—Curbed, 6 Dec. 2022
Its bony head armor was more like that of Asian ankyloaurs than ones from North America.
—Eric Betz, Discover Magazine, 19 July 2018
There are two types of fish, cartilaginous and bony.
—Orlando Mayorquin, USA TODAY, 21 Oct. 2022
See all Example Sentences for bony 
Dewayne Bevil, Orlando Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2023
Santiago Calatrava is best known for bridges that leap and budgets that soar, for vast and bony white-steel structures that evoke high-tech ruins of the future and cause fiscal ruin in the present.
—Curbed, 6 Dec. 2022
Its bony head armor was more like that of Asian ankyloaurs than ones from North America.
—Eric Betz, Discover Magazine, 19 July 2018
There are two types of fish, cartilaginous and bony.
—Orlando Mayorquin, USA TODAY, 21 Oct. 2022
See all Example Sentences for bony
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bony
Adjective
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Researchers first treated and sterilized thin sections of fossil using a mixture of ultrapure water and ethanol.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
6 Feb. 2025
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Her attire for the daytime outing featured a black base fabric with thin white pinstripes throughout.—
Julia Teti,
WWD,
5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The Anatolian mountains, where Ali tends to a barren garden, provide a sinister backdrop from which anything, not just a vagabond dropped as if from the sky, can suddenly appear.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
25 Jan. 2025
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The streets are barren, save for occasional officials’ vehicles.—
Katie Kilkenny,
The Hollywood Reporter,
22 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Native to Central and South America, money trees are popular houseplants with glossy green leaves and slender trunks, which are often braided for aesthetics.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
29 Jan. 2025
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Each one is about 8 feet (2.4 meters) long, powered by four slender thrusters, and requires three sailors to carefully maneuver it above the water before dropping it the last foot into the sea.—
Sarah Dean,
CNN,
27 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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For the scenes that take place in the Human World, the crew is going to shoot in a desolate part of Iceland.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
27 Jan. 2025
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What's more, the plane was completely encircled by massive screens that projected high-resolution videos of desolate Alaskan wilderness.—
Marco della Cava,
USA TODAY,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Something is wrong when a police officer who threatened to kill my son comes to my home and, without hesitating, without negotiating with a sick, skinny 21-year-old in crisis, carries out his threat and shoots my son five times.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
26 Jan. 2025
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The woman walked past, shuffling her skinny legs with determination.—
Samanta Schweblin,
The New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Though Osbourne had a farewell tour set to begin in 2023, he was forced to cancel the shows due to poor health.—
Rosa Rahimi,
CNN,
5 Feb. 2025
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Lopetegui was eventually sacked on January 8, having failed to fix West Ham’s poor form.—
Roshane Thomas,
The Athletic,
5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Moreover, Eaton is running leaner than expected, with management realizing over 190 basis points of segment profit margin expansion, resulting in a record high segment margin of 24.7%, as seen in the chart below.—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
31 Jan. 2025
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So why not apply lean management methods to our universities?—
Matthew G. Andersson,
Hartford Courant,
31 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The big picture: New data shows bleak economic conditions in Europe, especially relative to the U.S. The eurozone economy did not grow at all in the final months of 2024.—
Courtenay Brown,
Axios,
30 Jan. 2025
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New national test scores show a bleak picture of American education in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.—
Kayla Jimenez,
USA TODAY,
29 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near bony
Cite this Entry
“Bony.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bony. Accessed 9 Feb. 2025.
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