wizened
Shrunken with age
Wizened describes something shriveled and wrinkled, typically from age or harsh conditions.
The word usually applies to faces, skin, or entire bodies: a wizened old man, her wizened hands.
It can extend to dried-up fruits or plants.
Wizened carries associations of great age rather than mere thinness—something that has dried and contracted over time.
Dried and shrunken
- wrinkledHaving surface folds
- shrunkenReduced from original dimensions
- desiccatedThoroughly dehydrated
- parchedExtremely dry or thirsty
dehydrated · contracted · sere · crinkled · pruned · leathery · atrophied · deflated
Displaced by gusts
- leatheryResembling animal hide
- tannedDarkened by UV exposure
- creasedBearing pressed lines
- furrowedMarked with grooves
lined · craggy · worn · battered · hardened · roughened · seasoned · exposure
Advanced in age
patriarch · matriarch · crone · elder · octogenarian · nonagenarian · centenarian · geriatric
Lean from deprivation
- wastedUsed without good result
- thinSmall in diameter
- bonyThin, with protruding skeleton
- skeletalOf or like bones
emaciated · slight · delicate · fragile · feeble · weak · spindly · wispy
withered
Dried and shrunken
- wrinkledHaving surface folds
- shrunkenReduced from original dimensions
- desiccatedThoroughly dehydrated
parched · dehydrated · contracted · sere · crinkled · pruned · leathery · atrophied · deflated · sagging
windblown
Displaced by gusts
furrowed · lined · craggy · worn · battered · hardened · roughened · seasoned · exposure · elements
elderly
Advanced in age
hoary · patriarch · matriarch · crone · elder · octogenarian · nonagenarian · centenarian · geriatric · decrepit
gaunt
Lean from deprivation
skeletal · emaciated · slight · delicate · fragile · feeble · weak · spindly · wispy · wan
sage
Wisdom keeper or seasoning
- wizardlyOf or like sorcerers
- knowingPossessing awareness or insight
- shrewdPractically clever, perceptive
canny · astute · experienced · worldly · oracular · sibyl · hermit · mystic · shaman · mentor
twisted
Wound around itself
warped · burl · knobby · arthritic · rheumatic · bent · distorted · misshapen · grotesque · bonsai