Advertisement - Continue reading below

Definition of "round-shouldered" [round•-shoul•dered]

  • Having the shoulders bent forward and drooping and the upper back rounded. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "round-shouldered" in a sentence
  • "Balding, round-shouldered, with a delicate, almost shuffling walk that suggested the careful exertions of an arthritis sufferer, he had the discernment to know the exciting part of his life was long past, and the wisdom not to resent it."
  • "Pop wasn't a pretty boy — he was bow-legged and round-shouldered — but he posed in twelve-ounce gloves and showed a cocky face while Uncle Albert, whowasa pretty boy, and Uncle Walter were dressed to the nines in tweed suits, hand-painted ties, and alligator shoes, holding a silver loving cup between them."
  • "A small, round-shouldered woman skirts the streetlights at an intersection."