as in scarce
less plentiful than what is normal, necessary, or desirable
money would be skimp until she got her first paycheck from her new job
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to save
to avoid unnecessary waste or expense
we must skimp and save if we are going to afford a vacation this summer
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 skimp
Ryan Hogg, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2024
The caviar is often canned or frozen during the summer and fall to enjoy during the long winters—a taste of sunshine when our daylight hours are shortened to a skimp five.
—Irina Groushevaia, Bon Appétit, 15 July 2021
ABC News, 28 Mar. 2026
During his time as caterer and private chef to pro athletes in the NBA and NFL, Johnson leaned into health-forward, farm-to-table practices that support overall wellness without skimping on flavor.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for skimp
Adjective
Elon Musk’s product reveals rarely, if ever, skimp on style.
—Ryan Hogg, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2024
The caviar is often canned or frozen during the summer and fall to enjoy during the long winters—a taste of sunshine when our daylight hours are shortened to a skimp five.
—Irina Groushevaia, Bon Appétit, 15 July 2021
Verb
Eventually, higher fertilizer prices are likely to make food more expensive and less abundant as farmers skimp on it and get lower yields.
—ABC News, 28 Mar. 2026
During his time as caterer and private chef to pro athletes in the NBA and NFL, Johnson leaned into health-forward, farm-to-table practices that support overall wellness without skimping on flavor.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for skimp
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skimp
Adjective
-
When workers are scarce, firms have to offer higher wages to attract and keep them.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Underwater Caves Hold More Than Human Remains Around the time this individual was alive, the Yucatán Peninsula was a semi-arid savannah with no rivers or lakes — water and shade were scarce.—
Ryan Brennan
April 4,
Kansas City Star,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Animal Control would have to save about 600 more pets annually to meet that goal.—
Nick Sullivan,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The material is already on-site, saving the museum shipping and insurance costs.—
Ray Mark Rinaldi,
Denver Post,
6 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The evidence in favor of many other unapproved peptides is even sparser.—
Dhruv Khullar,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The options were sparse against the favorite for defensive player of the year honors.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Her early death, after an illness that the father initially contrives to ignore then notices just in time to capture her desperation in a fine sketch, leaves Mimí utterly disoriented, yearning only to achieve a level of self-control and detachment that will spare him their tumultuous struggle.—
Tim Parks,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
-
The culprit is one of the least snowy winter seasons in California in modern times, and the mountains at Yosemite have not been spared.—
Kurtis Alexander,
San Francisco Chronicle,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
For Robert Flamerich, who drives from Miami Beach to Doral daily, conserving gas means sacrificing comfort.—
Austin Carter,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
That acceleration, which for one mass orbiting another (like a planet orbiting a star) is both non-spherical and asymmetrical, necessitates the emission of gravitational radiation in order to conserve both energy and momentum.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
At hotels, which have been ditching items like free soaps and even bathroom doors to economize, the free breakfast is a sacred cow that some worry will not survive, increasingly seen by hotel operators as an money pit eating into the thin margins of the business.—
Kevin Williams,
CNBC,
15 Feb. 2026
-
In competitive markets, companies must economize and tighten their belts when faced with rising costs.—
David S. Lapp,
Baltimore Sun,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The world-class training facility owes its existence to the dedication of a group of volunteers, who scrimped and saved for well over a decade to get their own curling space.—
Kate Bradshaw,
Mercury News,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Absent better reverse mortgage options, this keeps retirees from spending a large share of their wealth, and means some are scrimping on their non-housing expenses.—
Allison Schrager,
Twin Cities,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Skimp.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skimp. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
