as in penurious
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Recent Examples of costive
In fact, their writings are more pungent now that they have been liberated from the costive confines of the movement.
—
Jacob Heilbrunn, The New Republic, 23 Jan. 2020
Movies coiled up in other movies have a habit of becoming either costive or cute, but somehow Falardeau avoids the traps.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 15 May 2017
Jacob Heilbrunn, The New Republic, 23 Jan. 2020
Movies coiled up in other movies have a habit of becoming either costive or cute, but somehow Falardeau avoids the traps.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 15 May 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for costive
Adjective
-
There’s a cast of wanderers, visionaries, and itinerants, the self-educated and self-published, a long lineage of cranks and outcasts, mostly penurious, always opinionated, stretching away into the mists of pseudohistory.—
Hari Kunzru,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Then the usually penurious Indians suddenly splurged.—
Chuck Murr,
Forbes.com,
19 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Here’s the resulting exchange: RC Women writers frequently adopt a tone or an attitude toward their female characters which is somewhat negative and ungenerous.—
Emily Temple,
Literary Hub,
7 May 2026
-
There’s a generous and an ungenerous reading of Carole Radziwill returning to RHONY.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
4 May 2026
Adjective
-
This is the most parsimonious way to account for the unified nature of consciousness, according to subcorticalists.—
Cody Cottier,
Scientific American,
28 May 2026
-
What fraction visible at basically every U.S. gas station originated as a parsimonious response to a 1932 one-penny gas tax?—
Drew Goins,
The Atlantic,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The film is set in Mumbai and built around a miserly protagonist whose circumstances spiral into escalating absurdity.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
21 Apr. 2026
-
UConn’s offense hasn’t been nearly as prolific, averaging 73.2 points per game, although its D has been downright miserly.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
6 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Squandering his Senate seniority and experience at this time, combined with his decision to appoint a newbie to replace him, should that opportunity arise, seems misguided at best and selfish at worst.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
31 May 2026
-
My grown kids still act like kids — selfish and insensitive.—
Ticked Off,
The Orlando Sentinel,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
There is no need to be uncharitable.—
Joe Soucheray,
Twin Cities,
25 Apr. 2026
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His uncharitable behavior and boundless love of money wins no converts to the Christian faith.—
Colin Pascal,
Baltimore Sun,
18 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Some of Colorado's top scorers have struggled against the Golden Knights' stingy defense.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 May 2026
-
Montreal’s rebuild looks like the class of the league, Buffalo is finally on the rise, and Ottawa made the playoffs off a stingy brand of possession hockey.—
Dom Luszczyszyn,
New York Times,
20 May 2026
Adjective
-
Every year, a complacent, tightfisted city council turned down the recommendations.—
Margaret Talbot,
The New Yorker,
2 Oct. 2023
-
Kotick played the tightfisted owner of the Oakland A’s.—
Cynthia Littleton,
Variety,
31 May 2023
Cite this Entry
“Costive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/costive. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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