paltry
Use Paltry in a sentence
tri adjective, pal·tri·er, pal·tri·est.
1.
ridiculously or insultingly small: a paltry sum.
2.
utterly worthless.
3.
mean or contemptible: a paltry coward.
Origin:
1560–70; < Low German paltrig ragged, equivalent to *palter rag (dialectal German Palter) + -ig -y1
1560–70; < Low German paltrig ragged, equivalent to *palter rag (dialectal German Palter) + -ig -y1
Related forms
pal·tri·ly, adverb
pal·tri·ness, noun
un·pal·try, adjective
Antonyms
1. important, major.
1. important, major.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To paltry
00:10
Paltry
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
paltry (ˈpɔːltrɪ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —adj , -trier, -triest | |
| 1. | insignificant; meagre |
| 2. | worthless or petty |
| [C16: from Low Germanic palter, paltrig ragged] | |
| 'paltrily | |
| —adv | |
| 'paltriness | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
paltry
1570, probably adj. use of noun paltry "worthless thing" (1556), associated with dial. palt, pelt "trash," cognate with M.L.G. and E.Fris. palte "rag," M.Du. palt "broken or torn fragment." Cf. Low Ger. paltrig "rubbishy," E.Fris. palterig "ragged, torn."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
After three weeks of prospecting, their paltry research funds dwindling, he chanced on a skeleton that brought him to tears.
With the threat of prosecution or a paltry pay-out, amateur archaeologists are unlikely to feel public-spirited.
As late as 1967, the average baseball player's salary was less than $20000, with paltry pension benefits.
In their sixties, they wondered why the paltry amounts they'd put in their retirement accounts weren't adding up to much.
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