stingy

¹

[stin-jee]

adjective

stingier, stingiest 

1. reluctant to give or spend; not generous; penurious.

   He's a stingy old miser.

   Synonyms: tight
   Antonyms: unselfish, liberal, generous

2. scanty or meager.

   a stingy little income.

   Synonyms: poor, paltry, sparse

stingy

²

[sting-ee]

adjective

1. having a sting.

stingy

¹

/ ˈstɪndʒɪ /

adjective

1. unwilling to spend or give

2. insufficient or scanty

stingy

²

/ ˈstɪŋɪ /

adjective

1. informal,  stinging or capable of stinging

noun

1. dialect,  a stinging nettle

   I put my hand on a stingy

Other Word Forms

• stingily adverb
• stinginess noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of stingy¹

First recorded in 1650–60; perhaps derivative of sting; -y ¹

Origin of stingy²

First recorded in 1605–15; sting + -y ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of stingy¹

C17 (perhaps in the sense: ill-tempered): perhaps from stinge, dialect variant of _sting

Synonym Study

Stingy, parsimonious, miserly, mean, close all mean reluctant to part with money or goods. Stingy, the most general of these terms, means unwilling to share, give, or spend possessions or money: children who are stingy with their toys; a stingy, grasping skinflint. Parsimonious describes an extreme stinginess arising from unusual or excessive frugality: a sternly parsimonious, penny-pinching existence. Miserly stresses a pathological pleasure in acquiring and hoarding money that is so powerful that even necessities are only grudgingly purchased: a wretched, miserly way of life. Mean suggests a small-minded, ignoble, petty stinginess leading to miserable, cheerless living: depressingly mean with his money; mean surroundings; a mean repast. Close implies extreme caution in spending money, even an aversion to spending: a close dealer, buying only at rock bottom prices; generous with advice, but very close with his money.

Example Sentences

She said that I was stingy and mean, an outcast at life’s rich feast.

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I knew the baroness to be stingy, rigid, and mean—the perfect temperament to throw a well-run school into turmoil.

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New England’s defense looks like something out of Mike Vrabel’s prime years: disciplined, physical, and stingy against the run.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

That’s because the charitable deduction is getting slightly stingier next year for wealthy households that itemize.

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The stocks of companies that invested the most no longer fell behind those of stingier companies, but didn’t beat them by much either.

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Related Words

• frugal 
• greedy 
• miserly 
• selfish 
• thrifty