cienny

Cienny is a Polish adjective used to describe physical thinness or narrowness as well as figurative faintness or insubstantiality. It describes objects with small cross sections or low density, such as cienny papier (thin paper) or cienny drut (thin wire). In figurative use, cienny may denote weakness or slightness of effect, for example cienny głos (a thin/weak voice) or cienny argument (a weak argument). The word can also describe textures or materials that are delicate or fine, such as cienny materiał (delicate fabric) or cienny splot (fine weave).

In everyday speech, cienny is somewhat less common for concrete objects than cienki; cienki is more frequent in colloquial contexts. Cienny tends to appear in formal writing, literature, technical descriptions, or stylistic prose, where a sense of refinement or precision is desired.

Grammar and etymology: Cienny is a standard Polish adjective and declines like other adjectives to agree with gender and number. Its etymology traces to older Slavic roots associated with thinness or fineness; cognates exist in related languages, reflecting a common Indo-European heritage of descriptors for texture and appearance.

See also: cienki, Polish language adjectives, thin.