Svelte
/svɛlt/noun
Slim, graceful, and elegant in appearance or movement.
Did you know?English got svelte from French svelte, ultimately from a Germanic source related to Old Norse and Dutch words for being slender or supple, showing how a word for physical grace became a style-word of modern elegance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*swaltaz / *swalþaz
“Slender, supple, or lithe”
Old Norse
ON
sveltr
“Lean or thin”
Middle Dutch
MDu
swelter
“Slim, slender”
French
French
svelte
“Slender, graceful”
Late 19th Century
English
svelte
“Elegant and slender in appearance”
Explore more surprising origins