13. Look up the following synonyms and explain their difference.

a) Bony – lean – skinny – slender – slight – slim – thin

b) Buxom – chubby – fat – obese – overweight – plump – stout

c) Easy – plain – simple

d) Little – meager – minute – slight – small – tiny

e) Nourishing – nutritious – rich

14. Fill in the gaps with one of the synonyms.

a) Bony – lean – skinny – slender – slight – slim – thin

1. At eighty my grandfather was ___ and strong and I expected him to live forever.

2. I have seen May’s son – a small, ___ child with delicate-looking features.

3. James was tall and ___ with brown hair and steel-gray eyes.

4. When I picked up the cat it felt as ___ as a skeleton.

5. Now you have to be a twig to be considered beautiful – like the ___ models who are passed off as the picture of perfect health in their glamorous clothes and makeup.

6. Hester was in her middle forties, ___ , and really good-looking.

7. He had long, ___ , expressive hands, like a concert pianist.

8. She had a runner’s ___ physique and an overall healthy glow

9. She looks so great – how does she stay so ___?

b) Buxom – chubby – fat – obese – overweight – plump – stout

1. Sally never wears a swimming-suit, she thinks she is too ___.

2. The baby reached out with his ___ little finger.

3. Amy, who once had a slim little figure, was now ___ , heavy and matronly, the mother of three children.

4. The doctor said I was slightly ___ and needed more exercise.

5. She was an attractive woman of about 45, fairly ___ and good to look at.

6. Who is that pretty ___ little girl with the dark hair.

7. He may not be clinically ___, but he should lose a lot of weight.

8. Elsie was a ___ healthy-looking woman, quick with a laugh.

9. Paula shrugged her beautiful ___ shoulders.

c) Easy – plain – simple

1. I like this recipe because it is so ___.

2. He does not find it ___ to talk about his personal matters.

3. She was wearing a ___ white dress which in fact cost her a fortune.

4. The instructions are in large print to make them ___ to read.

5. They suggested a ___ but effective solution to the problem.

d) Little – meager – minute – slight – small – tiny

1. Though the room was rather ___, it was comfortable and Anna decided to rent it.

2. I’ve got a very accurate account of the occasion, John described it in ___ detail.

3. They confined themselves to a ___ diet of hard-boiled eggs and raw tomatoes.

4. They all admired the pretty ___ house of Soames’ at Montpellier Square.

5. There was a ___ change, almost unnoticeable.

6. She had a ___ waist which had not thickened, in spite of the six babies she had carried beneath it.

7. What he managed to drag out of them was a ___ sum of $ 20, hardly enough to keep his body and soul together.

8. It was quite warm and a ___ breeze was blowing.

9. The poor ___ thing has cut her finger.

e) Nourishing – nutritious – rich

1. Food high in carbohydrates contains little ___ material needed to build up tissue.

2. For Christmas she usually makes a very ___ cake. I don’t remember the recipe, I only know that she puts a lot of eggs, cream and sugar into it.

3. Beans are said to be ___ but I don’t much like them.

4. Mr. Fatty wants to slim, so he should avoid eating ___ food.