tenuous
English · Thesaurus
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tenuous
- /ˈtɛ.njʊ.əs/ UK
- /ˈtɛn.ju.əs/ US
Sounds like tenuis (when "tenuous" includes /j/ and its unstressed /ɪ/ = [ə]) · Rhymes with -ɛnjuəs
Where it comes from
Irregularly formed from Latin tenuis (“thin, slight”) + -ous. Compare tenuious.
adjective more tenuous · most tenuous
-
Thin in substance or consistency.
The aether was thought to be of tenuous strands.
Similar: delicate, gossamer, breakable, tender, flimsy, fragile, frail, frailsome, frangible, slim, tenuous
-
Insubstantial.
His argument was not convincing in the debate, considering how tenuous it was.
Similar: ethereal, airy, aery, diaphanous, immaterial, insubstantial, tenuous, unreal, unsubstantial
- Precarious, dependent upon unreliable things. Paulina's repeated, almost anxious iteration of the lawfulness of her actions serves as a reminder of women's tenuous stance before the law in early modern English society.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: thin, flimsy, slight, weak, fine, slim, tiny, little, small, fragile, sketchy, brittle, puny, scant, frail, vulnerable
Translations
Every language
adj thin in substance or consistency
| Español | tenue |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 弱勢 /弱势 ruòshì |
| Português | ténue, tênue |
| Français | ténu |
| Deutsch | dünn, prekär, heikel, dürftig, fein, zart |
| Русский | то́нкий tónkij, жи́дкий žídkij |
| العربية | هَشّ hašš |
adj insubstantial
| Español | tenue |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | schwach, dürftig, nicht stichhaltig, unwesentlich, unbedeutend, angreifbar |
| Русский | несуще́ственный nesuščéstvennyj, несуще́ственная nesuščéstvennaja, несуще́ственное nesuščéstvennoje |
Talk about this word "tenuous." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tenuous. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. tenuous. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tenuous "tenuous." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tenuous.Cite this
@misc{tenuous_2026,
title = {tenuous},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tenuous},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
