gangling means awkwardly tall and thin, ungraceful. It carries an Arena rating of 1512, earned across 5 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, gangling ranks #261 of 17,163 for Funniest Words, #782 of 17,132 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #2,105 of 17,127 for Most Vivid Words, #4,355 of 17,142 for Most Ingenious Words.
Why “gangling” is a great word
Awkwardly tall and thin, with loose, ungraceful proportions or movements. Perhaps from dialectal English 'gangle' (to walk awkwardly), from 'gang' (to go, walk), akin to Swedish 'gänglig' (pliable, supple). Unlike "lanky," which neutrally notes a tall and lean frame, or "willowy," which evokes a slender grace, "gangling" is all hinge and angle, a body not yet in league with itself. It is the silhouette of a teenager outgrowing his clothes, the stork-like, hesitant stride on new legs, and the elbow that knocks the teacup mid-pour—a poignant, temporary state of being not yet reconciled to its own dimensions.
Etymology
Perhaps from gangle, from the dialectal gang (“to go, to walk, to proceed”). Compare Swedish gänglig.
adj
- Awkwardly tall and thin, ungraceful.e.g.“A gangling teenager.”
noun
- A member of a gang.e.g.“"Well, we'll meet in New York and you can see what's left of me! Bon voyage" the ganglings smirked & just beyond Grand, bang into not — da.” — 2007, Edward Estlin Cummings, Eimi:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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