cadaverous Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. adjective satellite very thin especially from disease or hunger or cold
    pinched; bony; emaciated; gaunt; skeletal; wasted; haggard.
    • emaciated bony hands
    • a nightmare population of gaunt men and skeletal boys
    • eyes were haggard and cavernous
    • small pinched faces
    • kept life in his wasted frame only by grim concentration
  2. adjective of or relating to a cadaver or corpse
    cadaveric.
    • we had long anticipated his cadaverous end

WordNet

Ca*dav"er*ous adjective
Etymology
L. cadaverosus.
Definitions
  1. Having the appearance or color of a dead human body; pale; ghastly; as, a cadaverous look.
  2. Of or pertaining to, or having the qualities of, a dead body. "The scent cadaverous." -- Ca*dav"er*ous*ly, adv. -- Ca*dav"er*ous*ness, n.

Webster 1913