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the hotel's shabby, outdated exercise room was its paltry attempt at a health spa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
Six weeks after capping a career-best season by assisting on the winning goal in the Cup final, Delgado was traded 12 miles up the Harbor Freeway to LAFC, a sacrifice to the league’s paltry salary cap.
—
Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2025
And yet even that explanation seems a little paltry to me!
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 17 May 2025
This remarkably compact gadget clocks in at a paltry 3.5 ounces.
—Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 16 May 2025
The players made a paltry sum of money compared to today's mega-millionaire contracts and were angry about the team owner, Charles Comiskey, paying them a pittance.
—Patricio Chile, ABC News, 13 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for paltry
Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2025
And yet even that explanation seems a little paltry to me!
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 17 May 2025
This remarkably compact gadget clocks in at a paltry 3.5 ounces.
—Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 16 May 2025
The players made a paltry sum of money compared to today's mega-millionaire contracts and were angry about the team owner, Charles Comiskey, paying them a pittance.
—Patricio Chile, ABC News, 13 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for paltry
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paltry
Adjective
-
The pitiful performance by the Texas Rangers against the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2016 divisional round.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 May 2025
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But the rates were pitiful: $9.87 for a 13-mile trip, $19.97 for a 25-mile trip and so on.—
Eli Tan,
New York Times,
14 May 2025
Adjective
-
The first project yields too many false positives, introducing an unacceptable amount of friction into the consumer experience.—
Shazia Manus,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
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But Humane Society officials insist any cut over $1 million is unacceptable and will prompt the nonprofit to stop providing service to the city.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
21 May 2025
Adjective
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Finally, the mint julep is a vile almost undrinkable beverage.—
John Cherwa,
Los Angeles Times,
3 May 2025
-
Along with receiving vulgar comments in person and people taking her picture on campus, the 18-year-old has received vile and sexist messages after her phone number was posted online.—
David Chiu,
People.com,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Here’s why: Although technical specifications are still being worked out, the new standard could deliver nominal peak data rates of more than 40Gbps.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
20 May 2025
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The main question of contemporary cinema isn’t (pace the nominal avant-garde) whether to tell a story but what story to tell, how to tell it, and, for that matter, what a story is.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
20 May 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
This tactic is sometimes used to justify letting an employee go under the guise of poor performance.—
Sho Dewan,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
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The product was released in 2023 to a poor reception, and discontinued before the company began winding down operations in February.—
Tom Huddleston Jr.,
CNBC,
24 May 2025
Adjective
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was brilliant (35 points), and the Thunder defense was nasty.—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
19 May 2025
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But Laxe’s cadence of death is nasty and arbitrary and delightful.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
18 May 2025
Adjective
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Injuries can range from a slight stretching of the ligament to a complete tear, where the knee becomes unstable.—
Paul McClure
May 31,
New Atlas,
31 May 2025
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By virtue of no state income tax, Florida, Tampa Bay, Vegas, Dallas and Nashville do enjoy a slight competitive advantage, but the first 14 Cup champions of the cap era didn’t share that same edge.—
Murat Ates,
New York Times,
31 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Paltry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paltry. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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