Very weak, slight, or insubstantial; having little substance or strength. Can describe physical things (like thin materials) or abstract concepts (like weak arguments).
From Latin 'tenuis,' meaning 'thin, fine, slender.' Related to words describing thinness and delicacy, it evolved from describing physical thinness to metaphorical weakness or insubstantiality.
Tenuous = 'thin-uous' — so thin it's barely there! Like a spider's web or a weak excuse, tenuous things are fragile and easily broken. One strong wind (or strong argument) can destroy them.
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