Dictionary.com

measly

[ mee-zlee ]
/ ˈmi zli /
See synonyms for measly on Thesaurus.com

adjective, mea·sli·er, mea·sli·est.

Informal.
  1. contemptibly small, meager, or slight: They paid me a measly fifteen dollars for a day's work.
  2. wretchedly bad or unsatisfactory: a measly performance.
infected with measles, as an animal or its flesh.
pertaining to or resembling measles.

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Origin of measly

First recorded in 1680–90; measl(es) + -y1

Words nearby measly

measles, measles immune globulin, measles, mumps, rubella vaccine, measles virus, measles virus vaccine, measly, measurable, measure, measured, measured daywork, Measure for Measure
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to measly

paltry, meager, miserly, miserable, pitiful, puny, beggarly, contemptible, insignificant, mean, niggling, pathetic, petty, picayune, piddling, poor, scanty, stingy, trifling, trivial

Example sentences from the Web for measly

British Dictionary definitions for measly

measly
/ (ˈmiːzlɪ) /

adjective -slier or -sliest

informal meagre in quality or quantity
(of meat) measled
having or relating to measles

Word Origin for measly

C17: see measles
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