paper-thin

[ pey-per-thin ]

/ ˈpeɪ pərˈθɪn /

extremely thin: a paper-thin razor blade.

inadequate or unconvincing; flimsy: a paper-thin excuse.

Origin of paper-thin

First recorded in 1925–30

For someone interested in upending how Americans perceive free speech, Rosenbaum presents a series of paper-thin arguments.

Free Speech Kills! |Michael Moynihan |February 3, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
“Her support is broader than I would like, but it's paper-thin,” Shays says.

Shays’s Rebellion: The Last Yankee Republican Fights For His Political Life |John Avlon |August 13, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
The chest protector was paper-thin with the faded mark of “Spalding” in the top left hand corner.

Pro Sports’ Hero Deficit |Buzz Bissinger |July 6, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
The walls were paper-thin, and he could hear all comings-and-goings at his end of the flophouse.

Exclusive Excerpt: MLK's Haunting Final Hours |Hampton Sides |April 24, 2010 |DAILY BEAST

Clegg won the leadership by a paper-thin majority in late 2007.

Britain's New Political Superstar |Niall Stanage |April 20, 2010 |DAILY BEAST
But I was told that in this country somewhere are Giants with sweet, hard kernels which fill up their paper-thin shell fully.

Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Twenty-Fifth Annual Meeting |Northern Nut Growers Association
It came apart easily, a shell of paper-thin but remarkably strong metal, protecting the tightly packed contents.

Gold in the Sky |Alan Edward Nourse
The cord had been passed through holes in a square of paper-thin birch bark.

The Secret Cache |E. C. [Ethel Claire] Brill
This place didn't have anything excepting a lonely shack with paper-thin walls made of special heat-insulating material.

The Minus Woman |Russell Robert Winterbotham
Meantime won't somebody give me another cup of coffee and about a dozen more rashers of that paper-thin bacon?

Camp Venture |George Cary Eggleston