HOSSO-RI ほっそり
Meanings
Describes a person, body part, or object as attractively slender, slim, and smoothly proportioned.
Examples
Do you have trousers that make my legs look a little slimmer?
もう少し、脚のラインがほっそり見えるパンツ（ズボン）はないですか？？
A carbon-fiber fishing rod can remain beautifully slender while still having plenty of strength.
カーボン製の釣竿は、ほっそりした美しいフォルムを保ちながら十分な強度がある。
Dogmatic Opinion
Compared with words such as GARI-GARI—skinny and bony—or HYORO-HYORO—thin and lanky—HOSSO-RI is clearly more positive.
It has often been used as a compliment about appearance or body shape, especially for women.
I would not particularly recommend using it that way today. Comments about another person’s body can carry baggage that the speaker may not intend.
Still, I cannot argue with the aesthetic sense that finds beauty in slenderness combined with strength. A fishing rod can be HOSSO-RI too. I do not fish, but there it is.
Proximate Expression
slender
willowy
thin
Related Words
For Japanese Learners
Slender, slim, delicately thin, and gracefully slender may fit. HOSSO-RI generally carries a positive aesthetic evaluation, unlike gaunt or skinny. When describing people, however, English as well as Japanese can make unsolicited body comments socially sensitive.
