1
as in pitiful
arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust
a paltry, underhanded scheme to get someone fired
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard
the hotel's shabby, outdated exercise room was its paltry attempt at a health spa
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3
as in vile
not following or in accordance with standards of honor and decency
just some paltry ruse to bilk the system
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4
as in nominal
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
wanted me to sell him my old records for a paltry sum
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of paltry
Global south leaders and activists at the climate summit were left angered by a $300 billion finance deal, a paltry commitment compared with the $1.3 trillion needed for climate adaptation.
—
Shafi Musaddique, CNBC, 24 Jan. 2025
There was a woman in her seventies who had been raped years ago by the father of one of the fifty-one defendants—making the trial, for her, a paltry chance at remedial justice.
—Katie Ebner-Landy, The New Yorker, 22 Feb. 2025
In their last 10 games (3-7), the Rockets are a paltry 28th in field goal percentage and 29th on 3-pointers.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
Small storage space in the K4 is on the paltry side, as the center console is pretty dinky and the door pockets shallow.
—Kristin Shaw, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paltry
Shafi Musaddique, CNBC, 24 Jan. 2025
There was a woman in her seventies who had been raped years ago by the father of one of the fifty-one defendants—making the trial, for her, a paltry chance at remedial justice.
—Katie Ebner-Landy, The New Yorker, 22 Feb. 2025
In their last 10 games (3-7), the Rockets are a paltry 28th in field goal percentage and 29th on 3-pointers.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
Small storage space in the K4 is on the paltry side, as the center console is pretty dinky and the door pockets shallow.
—Kristin Shaw, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paltry
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paltry
Adjective
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Its pitiful history includes only one application, less than a decade after its formulation, to strike down a delegation in Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States, 295 U.S. 495 (1935).—
Marie Sapirie,
Forbes,
3 Mar. 2025
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Kubrick’s film is a hell of a black comedy that satirizes the mediocrity of middle-class life: In the director’s world, fathers are pitiful providers, mothers are blandly cheerful (while quietly suffering enormously), and the kids see far more than their parents do.—
Tim Grierson,
Vulture,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Environmental groups have long opposed the new reservoir and objected to a shorter judicial review, saying the project will release unacceptable amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas, into the air in addition to other adverse impacts.—
Ari Plachta,
Sacramento Bee,
28 Feb. 2025
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The alternative — courts that fail to protect our fundamental rights — is unacceptable.—
Peter Martin,
New York Daily News,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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As are the people supporting or justifying these vile acts of terrorism.—
Bobby Zirkin,
Baltimore Sun,
24 Feb. 2025
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And for anyone who's forgotten just how vile Whitfield is, the next scene serves as a nasty reminder.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Howe used four different left-backs last term, mainly fielding Dan Burn there (a nominal centre-back at 6ft 7in/201cm), while Newcastle were the most one-sided team in the league for crosses — over 60 per cent came from the right.—
Liam Tharme,
The Athletic,
24 Feb. 2025
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Out of all of the foreign investment sources that have pumped cash into South Florida real estate, financial institutions, and new businesses over the years, Saudi Arabia is a nation that at best has a nominal presence in the region.—
David Lyons,
Sun Sentinel,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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As holidays go, however, Flag Day can feel a bit lame.—
Kevin Fisher-Paulson,
San Francisco Chronicle,
8 June 2021
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My 11-year-old loved watching the pups roll balls and play a giant floor piano, but for non-dog owners (guilty as charged), parts of the series—like dressing dogs in little hats and outfits for a Parisian fashion show—feel lame.—
Tim Neville,
Outside Online,
23 Nov. 2020
Adjective
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And another research team, using data from 2015 to 2022, observed in an article available in Energy Research and Social Science that poor income distribution correlates with social unrest when fossil fuel subsidies are removed.—
Aldo Flores-Quiroga,
Forbes,
1 Mar. 2025
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That poor Texas child is likely not to be the only fatality.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Poles needs to find difference-makers, nasty offensive linemen, game-wrecking defensive linemen, ravenous pass rushers … again, the Bears have a lot of needs.—
Jon Greenberg,
The Athletic,
26 Feb. 2025
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Meanwhile, Stacey woke up with a nasty hangover from the night prior.—
Abigail Adams,
People.com,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Freud’s notion of remembering, the inexact reiteration of what came before, is where creativity emerges—that slight drift from the original that lets something unlikely slip in.—
Namwali Serpell,
The New Yorker,
8 Mar. 2025
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Sugarcane honey is a concentrated form of sugarcane juice that has a slight licorice taste and a touch of bitterness.—
Joseph V Micallef,
Forbes,
8 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Paltry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paltry. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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