miserly
Americanadjective
adjective
Related Words
See stingy 1.
Other Word Forms
- miserliness noun
- unmiserly adjective
Etymology
Origin of miserly
Explanation
Miserly people are stingy with their money and not likely to be generous, like Ebenezer Scrooge himself. The adjective miserly evolved from the Latin word miser, which means “unhappy, wretched.” Nowadays, it's generally used to describe someone who hoards their money and presumably is miserable because of it. But be careful not to mix up the word miserly with misery — even though it can often be the unfortunate mental outcome of interacting with a miserly individual.
Vocabulary lists containing miserly
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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More Negative Words to Describe a Person
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Curmudgeon, Cantankerous and Churlish: Grouchy Words
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On his 50th birthday he writes to his London publisher, insulting his appearance and mocking his miserly advance.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026
The familiar story unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter and Boy George.
From BBC • Dec. 13, 2025
Known as “The Witch of Wall Street” for her miserly ways, Green quietly bailed out New York City in the early 1900s.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 12, 2025
England's spinners bowled brilliantly in tandem throughout the innings, giving little away in miserly spells of 3-27 from Sophie Ecclestone, 2-28 for Smith and 1-31 for Dean.
From BBC • Jul. 19, 2025
The Smeaths in our rendition of them are charmless, miserly, heavy as dough, boring as white margarine, which we claim they eat for dessert.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
