Slenderly

Slender Slen"der, a. [Compar. {Slenderer}; superl. {Slenderest}.] [OE. slendre, sclendre, fr. OD. slinder thin, slender, perhaps through a French form; cf. OD. slinderen, slidderen, to creep; perh. akin to E. slide.] 1. Small or narrow in proportion to the length or the height; not thick; slim; as, a slender stem or stalk of a plant. ``A slender, choleric man.'' --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]

She, as a veil down to the slender waist, Her unadorned golden tresses wore. --Milton. [1913 Webster]

2. Weak; feeble; not strong; slight; as, slender hope; a slender constitution. [1913 Webster]

Mighty hearts are held in slender chains. --Pope. [1913 Webster]

They have inferred much from slender premises. --J. H. Newman. [1913 Webster]

The slender utterance of the consonants. --J. Byrne. [1913 Webster]

3. Moderate; trivial; inconsiderable; slight; as, a man of slender intelligence. [1913 Webster]

A slender degree of patience will enable him to enjoy both the humor and the pathos. --Sir W. Scott. [1913 Webster]

4. Small; inadequate; meager; pitiful; as, slender means of support; a slender pittance. [1913 Webster]

Frequent begging makes slender alms. --Fuller. [1913 Webster]

5. Spare; abstemious; frugal; as, a slender diet. [1913 Webster]

The good Ostorius often deigned To grace my slender table with his presence. --Philips. [1913 Webster]

6. (Phon.) Uttered with a thin tone; -- the opposite of broad; as, the slender vowels long e and i. [1913 Webster] -- {Slen"der*ly}, adv. -- {Slen"der*ness}, n. [1913 Webster]