skeleton

1. 1.

   something reduced to its minimal form

   “the battalion was a mere skeleton of its former self”

   “the bare skeleton of a novel”

   Broaderminimum
2. 2.

   a scandal that is kept secret

   “there must be a skeleton somewhere in that family's closet”

   Synonymsskeleton in the closetskeleton in the cupboard

   Broaderscandal
3. 3.

   the hard structure (bones and cartilages) that provides a frame for the body of an animal

   Synonymsskeletal systemframesystema skeletale

   Broadersystem

   Narrowerendoskeletonexoskeleton

   Part ofmusculoskeletal system

   Partsskeletal structure
4. 4.

   the internal supporting structure that gives an artifact its shape

   “the building has a steel skeleton”

   Synonymsskeletal frameframeunderframe

   Broadersupporting structure

   Narrowerchassishoop

   Part ofbuildingshipaircraft

Other forms of skeleton

plural

skeletons·

Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.

Questions about skeleton

What does skeleton mean?

skeleton means "something reduced to its minimal form". That is the primary sense; the word has 4 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in skeleton?

skeleton has 3 syllables: skel-e-ton. The stress falls on "skel". In IPA it is /ˈskɛlətən/.

What is another word for skeleton?

Close synonyms include skeleton in the closet, skeleton in the cupboard, skeletal system, frame, systema skeletale. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is skeleton a common word?

skeleton is banded "Common" — everyday vocabulary in speech and writing. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.

What rhymes with skeleton?

1 word rhymes with skeleton. Rhymes are matched on the phonemes from the last stressed vowel onward, which is the definition a reader has in their head.