Gauntly is an adjective used to describe a person who appears very thin, haggard, and malnourished. There are many synonyms for gauntly, including emaciated, skeletal, thin, scrawny, bony, wasted, undernourished, starved, lean, and skinny. These synonyms are often used to describe someone who is suffering from an illness, such as cancer, or has been deprived of food and water for an extended period of time. Gauntly can also be used to describe a landscape that appears barren, desolate, and devoid of life, in which case other synonyms include stark, bleak, barren, and sterile. Overall, gauntly is a word that connotes a sense of thinness, weakness, and a lack of vitality.