Synonyms of skimpy

skimpy

adjective

ˈskim-pē 

as in sparse

less plentiful than what is normal, necessary, or desirable

the information in the user's manual for the microwave is skimpy and not particularly helpful

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sparse
• scarce
• poor
• meager
• scanty
• scant
• lacking
• slender
• lowest
• stingy
• inadequate
• insufficient
• small
• light
• exiguous
• short
• slim
• skimp
• spare
• minimal
• sparing
• mere
• thin on the ground
• thin
• hand-to-mouth
• deficient
• least
• bare-bones
• wanting
• slightest
• bare
• sterile
• slight
• littlest
• unproductive
• barren
• unfruitful
• infertile

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• adequate
• ample
• generous
• sufficient
• abundant
• plentiful
• copious
• liberal
• enough
• satisfactory
• bountiful
• rich
• tolerable
• fat
• fertile
• prolific
• lavish
• fruitful
• plenteous
• extra
• excess
• luxuriant
• bursting
• fecund
• surplus
• thriving
• flourishing
• proliferative
• blooming
• teeming
• swarming

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective skimpy differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of skimpy are meager, scanty, scant, spare, and sparse. While all these words mean "falling short of what is normal, necessary, or desirable," skimpy usually suggests niggardliness or penury as the cause of the deficiency.

tacky housing developments on skimpy lots

In what contexts can meager take the place of skimpy?

The words meager and skimpy are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, meager implies the absence of elements, qualities, or numbers necessary to a thing's richness, substance, or potency.

a meager portion of meat

When can scant be used instead of skimpy?

The words scant and skimpy can be used in similar contexts, but scant suggests a falling short of what is desired or desirable rather than of what is essential.

in January the daylight hours are scant

When might scanty be a better fit than skimpy?

The meanings of scanty and skimpy largely overlap; however, scanty stresses insufficiency in amount, quantity, or extent.

supplies too scanty to last the winter

When would spare be a good substitute for skimpy?

While in some cases nearly identical to skimpy, spare may suggest a slight falling short of adequacy or merely an absence of superfluity.

a spare, concise style of writing

When could sparse be used to replace skimpy?

While the synonyms sparse and skimpy are close in meaning, sparse implies a thin scattering of units.

a sparse population

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of skimpy

Michigan's system has incorrectly directed people with disabilities into skimpier benefits that cover limited care or denied coverage completely, a KFF Health News investigation found. — Rachana Pradhan, NPR, 20 July 2026

What if our habits of normalization lead us to accept super storms and skimpy winters as normal? — Literary Hub, 15 July 2026

Shawn flexed, and at the foot of the stairs, two women dressed like sexy Ash Ketchums, their costumes even skimpier than Shawn's, jumped up and down, and then Shawn rushed down the stairs to greet them and pulled them onto the small stage with him. — Danielle Parker, CBS News, 19 June 2026

His torso and thighs grow eye-poppingly muscular beneath their skimpy fur-and-leather togs—a development that does not go unnoticed by a warrior named Red Hair, who plucks the young hunk from his post and tosses him into the prime time of the gladiator pit. — Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 15 June 2026