Paltry Definition

pôltrē
paltrier, paltriest
adjective
paltriest, paltrier
Lacking in importance or worth.
American Heritage
Very small or inadequate in amount; negligible.
Was paid a paltry sum for his work.
American Heritage
Practically worthless; trifling; insignificant; contemptible; petty.
Webster's New World

Trashy, trivial, of little value.

This is indeed a paltry flyer about a silly product.
She made some paltry excuse and left.
Wiktionary
Synonyms:
Antonyms:

Other Word Forms of Paltry

Adjective

Base Form:
paltry
Comparative:
paltrier
Superlative:
paltriest

Origin of Paltry

  • From Middle Low German paltrig (“ragged, rubbishy, worthless"), from palter, palte (“cloth, rag, shred"), from Old Saxon *paltro, *palto (“cloth, rag"), from Proto-Germanic *paltrô, *paltô (“scrap, rag, patch"). Cognate with Eastern Frisian palterig (“ragged, torn"), German dialectal palterig (“paltry"). Compare also Low German palte (“rag"), West Frisian palt (“rag"), German dialectal Palter (“rag"), Danish pjalt (“rag, tatter"), Swedish palta (“rag"). See also palterly.

    From Wiktionary

  • Probably from obsolete and dialectal paltry trash perhaps from Low German paltrig ragged from palte rag

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

Paltry Sentence Examples

  • Human griefs seem little worth assuaging; human happiness too paltry (at the best) to be worth increasing.

  • Although investment is at record levels, it is still pretty paltry.

  • This may look a long period for so paltry a world.

  • Fines for successful prosecutions are often paltry, but have been as high £ 101,000.

  • The fact that a family of five plus a pilot is a fairly paltry population to launch a new colony, never mind the inbreeding factor, is never addressed.

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Words Starting With

PPAPAL

Words Ending With

YRYTRY

Unscrambles

paltry

Words Starting With P and Ending With Y

Starts With P & Ends With YStarts With PA & Ends With YStarts With P & Ends With RY

Word Length

6 Letter Words6 Letter Words Starting With P6 Letter Words Ending With Y