miserliness 1 of 2

miserly

2 of 2

adjective

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective miserly contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of miserly are close, niggardly, parsimonious, penurious, and stingy. While all these words mean "being unwilling or showing unwillingness to share with others," miserly suggests a sordid avariciousness and a morbid pleasure in hoarding.

a miserly couple devoid of social conscience

When can close be used instead of miserly?

Although the words close and miserly have much in common, close suggests keeping a tight grip on one's money and possessions.

folks who are very close when charity calls

When is it sensible to use niggardly instead of miserly?

While the synonyms niggardly and miserly are close in meaning, niggardly implies giving or spending the very smallest amount possible.

the niggardly amount budgeted for the town library

Where would parsimonious be a reasonable alternative to miserly?

The synonyms parsimonious and miserly are sometimes interchangeable, but parsimonious suggests a frugality so extreme as to lead to stinginess.

a parsimonious lifestyle notably lacking in luxuries

When would penurious be a good substitute for miserly?

The words penurious and miserly can be used in similar contexts, but penurious implies niggardliness that gives an appearance of actual poverty.

the penurious eccentric bequeathed a fortune

When is stingy a more appropriate choice than miserly?

While in some cases nearly identical to miserly, stingy implies a marked lack of generosity.

a stingy child, not given to sharing

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of miserliness
Adjective
Newcastle's player sale profits were miserly for years until June 2024 Profit on player sales from 2014 to 2024 (£millions) Column chart of Newcastle United profit on player sales, where club record £69.8m in 2023-24 far outweigh what came before. Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2025 Here's the unvarnished truth: Medicaid's miserly reimbursement rates have driven countless doctors to stop accepting patients in the program. Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025 Chrissy made a predictably miserly offer of $230,000, and obviously David did not take it. Laura Bradley, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2025 Up to then, Wrexham had by far the most miserly defence in League One after conceding just 11 goals in 19 league games — five better than Birmingham City and Huddersfield Town. Richard Sutcliffe, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for miserliness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for miserliness
Noun
  • Bank of England cuts rates following historic split vote The Bank of England cut interest rates by a quarter point to 4% Thursday, after a historic split among the Monetary Policy Committee required a second vote, indicative of the uncertainties plaguing a flagging UK economy.
    Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2025
  • Washington has sent Kyiv more than $66 billion in weapons; enacted a list of sanctions on the Russian economy; and helped the G-7 push through an unprecedented price-cap scheme meant to limit Russian oil revenues—all in the hope Moscow would sue for peace.
    Daniel DePetris, Time, 7 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • The United States seems to be the only major nation that’s in the grip of such mercenary and selfish dogma.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2025
  • Each declaration chips away at the outdated beliefs that wealth is unladylike or selfish.
    Melissa Houston, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • Navigating this revolution responsibly requires careful policy, support for adaptation and a focus on using technology to benefit people.
    Vaibhav Dani, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2025
  • Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.
    CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 17 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • So, what would really help the Mets’ pen would be a late-game arm who is stingy with free passes.
    Tim Britton, New York Times, 28 July 2025
  • Apple has always been a bit stingy with RAM in iDevices, even more so a few years ago, and especially in lower-end devices (Apple Intelligence and its apparent 8GB RAM requirement have been a bit of an equalizer here).
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 24 July 2025
Adjective
  • Though one is a human innovation and the other hails from a distant world, neither would’ve posed a danger had greedy tech barons not released them from the Pandora’s box of scientific progress.
    Judy Berman, Time, 5 Aug. 2025
  • O’ahu, Maui, Kaua’i and the big island of Hawai’i were all joined by water but divided by greedy men, cunning chiefs and a cycle of endless combat.
    Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 1 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Compare to Unilever's €1 billion investment in reusable packaging systems, already showing 12% cost savings in pilot markets, proving circular models can be profit centers rather than compliance costs.
    Trond Arne Undheim, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2025
  • However, the announcement marks a major win for those in the respective asset industries, who have long been lobbying for a chance to tap into the roughly $12.2 trillion held in retirement savings plans.
    Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • The parsimonious publics of the United States and other democracies, on the other hand, would prevent their governments from expending the necessary resources to resist Beijing’s efforts to undermine a boycott.
    Dawn Brancati, Foreign Affairs, 25 Mar. 2021
  • Wimpy was a mild-mannered, soft-spoken, lazy, parsimonious, and utterly gluttonous hamburger-wolfing straight man to Popeye.
    Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 July 2025
Noun
  • No act of parsimony shrinks the size of government either.
    John Tamny, Forbes.com, 21 June 2025
  • Parsimony For The Prudent The principle of parsimony is a key tenet of business success that prudent entrepreneurs can apply in many areas, including data gathering.
    Julius Černiauskas, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Miserliness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/miserliness. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!