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diaphanous

daɪˈæfənəsadjective

What does diaphanous mean?

So light and thin you can almost see through it.

Diaphanous, six ways

PlainSo light and thin you can almost see through it.
ADHDSee-through thin. Light. Floaty.
Gen ZSheer, like a curtain you can see the garden through.
MetaphorMist that decided to be fabric.
FormalOf fabric: light, delicate, and translucent.
Like I’m 5Cloth so thin and light you can almost see through it. That’s diaphanous.

How to pronounce diaphanous

dye-AF-uh-nus/daɪˈæfənəs/

Diaphanous in a sentence

A diaphanous curtain moved in the breeze.
A diaphanous scarf caught the light.
Morning fog hung in diaphanous layers.

Synonyms for diaphanous

sheerPlainer, for fabric.
translucentLets light through, not shapes.
gossamerLight as cobweb, and more poetic.

Where diaphanous comes from

Greek. Diaphanēs, showing through, from dia, through, and phainein, to show.

Good to know

Mostly for fabric, mist and wings. It means light and fine enough to see through, not simply thin.

Diaphanous meaning, on a Gloss card: So light and thin you can almost see through it.

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In: Beautiful words · Words for the senses · Latin and Greek roots