Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun skeleton

4 senses of skeleton

Sense 1
skeleton -- (something reduced to its minimal form; "the battalion was a mere skeleton of its former self"; "the bare skeleton of a novel")
       => minimum, lower limit -- (the smallest possible quantity)

Sense 2
skeleton, skeleton in the closet, skeleton in the cupboard -- (a scandal that is kept secret; "there must be a skeleton somewhere in that family's closet")
       => scandal, outrage -- (a disgraceful event)

Sense 3
skeletal system, skeleton, frame, systema skeletale -- (the hard structure (bones and cartilages) that provides a frame for the body of an animal)
       => system -- (a group of physiologically or anatomically related organs or parts; "the body has a system of organs for digestion")

Sense 4
skeleton, skeletal frame, frame, underframe -- (the internal supporting structure that gives an artifact its shape; "the building has a steel skeleton")
       => supporting structure -- (a structure that serves to support something)