variants
or meagre
1
: having little flesh : thin
meager were his looks, sharp misery had worn him to the bones—
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare2
a
: lacking desirable qualities (such as richness or strength)
leading a meager life
b
: deficient in quality or quantity
a meager diet
meagerly
adverb
meagerness
noun
Examples of meager in a Sentence
Every morning he eats a meager breakfast of toast and coffee.
We'll have to do the best we can with this year's meager harvest.
She came to this country with a fairly meager English vocabulary, but she is learning more words every day.
They suffered through several meager years at the beginning of their marriage.
Although she's now rich and famous, she remembers her meager beginnings as a child from a poor family.
Recent Examples on the Web
The stories went viral, touching off tens of thousands of angry comments from users who were equally perplexed and dismayed over the loss of any piece of the city's already meager urban canopy.
—Vanessa Romo, NPR, 30 Apr. 2025
Invest in a low-profile pot rack that’s flush to the wall
Forget those hanging pot racks that cut into your already meager standing room.
—Alex Ronan, Architectural Digest, 22 Apr. 2025
The only exception was in 2021-22, after Ovechkin signed a five-year, $47.5 million contract extension that featured a relatively meager $5 million in salary and bonuses in its first season.
—Brett Knight, Forbes.com, 6 Apr. 2025
For its relatively meager expense on NATO, the U.S. gets quite a bit.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for meager
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Vanessa Romo, NPR, 30 Apr. 2025
Invest in a low-profile pot rack that’s flush to the wall
Forget those hanging pot racks that cut into your already meager standing room.
—Alex Ronan, Architectural Digest, 22 Apr. 2025
The only exception was in 2021-22, after Ovechkin signed a five-year, $47.5 million contract extension that featured a relatively meager $5 million in salary and bonuses in its first season.
—Brett Knight, Forbes.com, 6 Apr. 2025
For its relatively meager expense on NATO, the U.S. gets quite a bit.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for meager
Cite this Entry
“Meager.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meager. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share