painfully thin

This page is about the collocation painfully thin

collocation pattern: adverb + adjective

Meaning

extremely thin, of a person or animal

For example

  • David was painfully thin when he was sick, but he looks much better now.

  • Her family told her she looked painfully thin, but Jessica thought she still looked fat.

Quick Quiz

Which could be described as "painfully thin"?

a. a stray dog

b. a poor excuse

c. a room's walls
a) a stray dog b) a poor excuse c) a room's walls

Contributor: Matt Errey