definitions

exiguous

[ ig-zig-yoo-uh s, ik-sig- ]
/ ɪgˈzɪg yu əs, ɪkˈsɪg- /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR exiguous ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

scanty; meager; small; slender: exiguous income.

RELATED WORDS

bare, confined, diminutive, inadequate, limited, little, meager, narrow, negligible, paltry, petty, poor, restricted, skimpy, slender, slight, small, spare, sparse, tenuous

Nearby words

exigency, exigent, exigently, exigible, exiguity, exiguous, exiguously, exilarch, exile, exilic, eximious

Origin of exiguous

1645–55; < Latin exiguus scanty in measure or number, small, equivalent to exig(ere) (see exigent) + -uus deverbal adj. suffix
Related formsex·i·gu·i·ty [ek-si-gyoo-i-tee] /ˌɛk sɪˈgyu ɪ ti/, ex·ig·u·ous·ness, nounex·ig·u·ous·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for exiguous

British Dictionary definitions for exiguous

exiguous

/ (ɪɡˈzɪɡjʊəs, ɪkˈsɪɡ-) /

adjective

scanty or slender; meagrean exiguous income
Derived Formsexiguity (ˌɛksɪˈɡjuːɪtɪ) or exiguousness, nounexiguously, adverb

Word Origin for exiguous

C17: from Latin exiguus, from exigere to weigh out; see exigent
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for exiguous

exiguous

adj.

"scanty," 1650s, from Latin exiguus "small, petty, paltry, scanty in measure or number," from exigere (see exact).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper