paltry

[pawl-tree]

See more synonyms for paltry on Thesaurus.com

adjective, pal·tri·er, pal·tri·est.

ridiculously or insultingly small: a paltry sum.
utterly worthless.
mean or contemptible: a paltry coward.

Origin of paltry

1560–70; < Low German paltrig ragged, equivalent to *palter rag (dialectal German Palter) + -ig -y¹

Related formspal·tri·ly, adverbpal·tri·ness, nounun·pal·try, adjective

Can be confusedpaltry poultry

Synonyms

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1. minor, inconsiderable, slight, insignificant. See petty.

Antonyms

1. important, major.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for paltry

Contemporary Examples

In all these elections, it was the suburbs—not paltry gains in the cities—that made the difference.
The Progressives’ War on Suburbia
Joel Kotkin
November 16, 2014
Also shown are the (paltry) sums spent by each organization on candidates and campaigns.
Flushing Money Down the Tea Party Toilet
Tom Dougherty
August 19, 2014
Salem the prep school kid felt so slighted by a paltry $3 million bonus in 2011 that he left the firm.
Too Big to Jail: Confessions of a Goldman Sachs Brat
Michael Daly
June 26, 2014
In his first season as owner of the San Diego Clippers, the team drew a paltry 4,344 fans a game.
How to Rescue the Clippers From Donald Sterling’s Racist Clutches
Jesse Lawrence
April 29, 2014
Yes, women make up 45% of the Swedish parliament compared to a paltry 18% in the U.S Congress.
Can the Gender Gap Be Solved?
Kay Hymowitz
April 22, 2014

Historical Examples

Duncan dismissed this paltry consideration with a princely gesture.
The Fortune Hunter
Louis Joseph Vance
What's that paltry hundred or two, compared with the millions I shall make?
The Channings
Mrs. Henry Wood
Lugging a fellow up for a pitiful, paltry sum of twenty pounds!
The Channings
Mrs. Henry Wood
The poor thing's vengeance was theatrical and paltry, but what of the man, wherever he was?
The Christian
Hall Caine
It was a paltry consolation, perhaps, but it was the best that then occurred to me.
The Shame of Motley
Raphael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for paltry

paltry

adjective -trier or -triest

insignificant; meagre
worthless or petty

Derived Formspaltrily, adverbpaltriness, noun

Word Origin

C16: from Low Germanic palter, paltrig ragged

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 paltry

adj.

1560s, probably an adjectival use of noun paltry "worthless thing" (1550s), associated with dialectal palt, pelt "trash," cognate with Middle Low German and East Frisian palte "rag," Middle Dutch palt "broken or torn fragment." Cf. Low German paltrig "rubbishy," East Frisian palterig "ragged, torn."

paltry

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}paltry

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Examples from the Web for paltry

Contemporary Examples

In all these elections, it was the suburbs—not paltry gains in the cities—that made the difference.

Also shown are the (paltry) sums spent by each organization on candidates and campaigns.

Salem the prep school kid felt so slighted by a paltry $3 million bonus in 2011 that he left the firm.

In his first season as owner of the San Diego Clippers, the team drew a paltry 4,344 fans a game.

Yes, women make up 45% of the Swedish parliament compared to a paltry 18% in the U.S Congress.

Historical Examples

Duncan dismissed this paltry consideration with a princely gesture.

What's that paltry hundred or two, compared with the millions I shall make?

Lugging a fellow up for a pitiful, paltry sum of twenty pounds!

The poor thing's vengeance was theatrical and paltry, but what of the man, wherever he was?

It was a paltry consolation, perhaps, but it was the best that then occurred to me.

paltry

Word Origin

Word Origin and History for paltry

adj.

Origin of paltry