veiny

A piece of veiny marble sits on the sculptor's workbench.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Having prominent veins: "veiny" describes something that has many visible veins, such as on skin, leaves, or marble.
   • Characterized by a network of veins: Used to indicate a surface or material marked by vein-like lines or patterns.

Usage Examples

• (His hands had prominent veins visible on the surface.)
• (The marble displayed distinct vein-like patterns.)
• (The legs had clearly visible veins.)

Advanced Usage

• "veiny appearance": a look or texture marked by visible veins.

  • The veiny appearance of the leaf indicated it was from a mature plant. (The leaf had a network of veins on its surface.)

• "veiny texture": a surface quality resembling veins.

  • The artist preferred a veiny texture in his stone sculptures. (He liked the look of natural vein patterns in stone.)

Variants and Related Words

• Vein (n): a blood vessel that carries blood toward the heart; a streak or stripe in a material.

  • The miner found a gold vein in the rock. (A line or layer of gold within the rock.)

• Veined (adj): having veins; marked with lines or streaks.

  • The veined pattern on the butterfly's wings was beautiful. (The wings had lines resembling veins.)

• Veinless (adj): lacking veins.

  • Some marble types are almost veinless and very smooth. (Without visible vein patterns.)

Synonyms

• Streaked: marked with lines or stripes.
• Ribbed: having raised lines or ridges (often used for leaves or fabric).
• Nervured: having nerves or veins (especially in botany).

Related Idioms

• In the same vein: in a similar style or manner.

  • Her second novel was written in the same vein as her first. (Similar in style or tone.)

• Strike a vein: to find a rich source of something (originally from mining).

  • The writer struck a vein of inspiration and produced many stories. (Found a productive source.)