paltry

adjective

pal·​try ˈpȯl-trē 

paltrier; paltriest

1

: inferior, trashy

built paltry houses unfit for occupancy

2

: mean, despicable

a paltry trick

3

: trivial

a paltry excuse

they in their greatness don't have to bother with such paltry restrictions

—Vanessa Feltz

4

: meager, measly

made a paltry donation

Sales have increased by a paltry two percent.

paltriness noun

Did you know?

Before "paltry" was an adjective, it was a noun meaning "trash." That now obsolete noun in turn came from "palt" or "pelt," dialect terms meaning "a piece of coarse cloth," or broadly, "trash." The adjective "paltry" first meant "trashy," but currently has a number of senses, all generally meaning "no good." A "paltry house" might be run-down and unfit for occupancy; a "paltry trick" is a trick that is low-down and dirty; a "paltry excuse" is a trivial one; and a "paltry sum" is small and insufficient.

Synonyms

• cheap
• contemptible
• cruddy
• deplorable
• despicable
• dirty
• grubby
• lame
• lousy
• mean
• nasty
• pitiable
• pitiful
• ratty
• scabby
• scummy
• scurvy
• sneaking
• sorry
• wretched

Examples of paltry in a Sentence

a paltry, underhanded scheme to get someone fired

the hotel's shabby, outdated exercise room was its paltry attempt at a health spa

Recent Examples on the Web

That survey by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies found 59% of voters against it and just 28% in favor, with a relatively paltry 13% undecided or neutral. —Thomas Elias, The Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2024

That survey by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies found 59 percent of voters against and just 28 percent in favor, with a relatively paltry 13 percent undecided or neutral. —Thomas D. Elias, Orange County Register, 9 Apr. 2024

The board last raised Huang’s bonus pay opportunity in fiscal 2022 to $2 million with an award opportunity of 200% or $4 million, a relatively paltry sum for such an influential tech CEO. —Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 9 Apr. 2024

The company will also likely increase its dividend payouts from what looks like a paltry 0.02% currently as the business grows. —Simon Constable, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

That average is kept low by the biggest brick-and-mortar banks like JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, which still are offering a paltry 0.01%. —Jeanne Sahadi, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024

That’s up from 45 in 2017, when Hahn and other supervisors expressed dismay at the department’s paltry number. —Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2024

Seven Royals players stole at least 20 bases that year while the team home run leader was Amos Otis with a paltry 18. —Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024

Due to sparse funding and a paltry 3,000 soldiers trying to stand against Britain’s formidable forces, the Continental Congress was running out of options. —Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 12 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

obsolete paltry trash, from dialect palt, pelt piece of coarse cloth, trash; akin to Middle Low German palte rag

First Known Use

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

paltry

adjective

pal·​try ˈpȯl-trē 

paltrier; paltriest

1

: petty sense 3, mean

a paltry trick

2

: trivial sense 2, worthless

a paltry sum

paltriness noun