Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Lacking arms: Describes a person, statue, or object that does not have arms or upper limbs.
   • Lacking projecting parts: Can describe something that lacks arm-like extensions or branches.

Usage and Examples

• Adjective:
  • The famous statue, the Venus de Milo, is an armless masterpiece from ancient Greece.
  • The new chair design is sleek and armless to save space.
  • He was born armless but learned to paint beautifully with his feet.

Advanced Usage

• Figurative Use: While primarily literal, it can be used figuratively to describe something as lacking support or means of action.
  • The new policy was armless and ineffective against the crisis. (This usage is less common and more literary.)

Variants and Related Words

• Arm (noun): The upper limb of the human body, or a similar projecting part.
• Armed (adjective): Equipped with weapons; the direct antonym in its other meaning.
• Armlessness (noun): The state or condition of being without arms.

Synonyms

• Limbless (specifically for lacking limbs in general).
• Without arms (a descriptive phrase).

Antonyms

• Armed (when meaning equipped with weapons).
• Limbed (having limbs).

Notes on Meaning

The word armless almost exclusively refers to the physical absence of arms (limbs). It is not used to mean "without weapons"; the adjective for that is "unarmed." Confusing these can lead to significant misunderstanding.

Adjective

1. having no arms
   • the armless Venus de Milo