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Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective stingy contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of stingy are close, miserly, niggardly, parsimonious, and penurious. While all these words mean "being unwilling or showing unwillingness to share with others," stingy implies a marked lack of generosity.

a stingy child, not given to sharing

When could close be used to replace stingy?

The words close and stingy can be used in similar contexts, but close suggests keeping a tight grip on one's money and possessions.

folks who are very close when charity calls

When might miserly be a better fit than stingy?

The words miserly and stingy are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, miserly suggests a sordid avariciousness and a morbid pleasure in hoarding.

a miserly couple devoid of social conscience

When is niggardly a more appropriate choice than stingy?

In some situations, the words niggardly and stingy are roughly equivalent. However, niggardly implies giving or spending the very smallest amount possible.

the niggardly amount budgeted for the town library

When would parsimonious be a good substitute for stingy?

While the synonyms parsimonious and stingy are close in meaning, parsimonious suggests a frugality so extreme as to lead to stinginess.

a parsimonious lifestyle notably lacking in luxuries

Where would penurious be a reasonable alternative to stingy?

While in some cases nearly identical to stingy, penurious implies niggardliness that gives an appearance of actual poverty.

the penurious eccentric bequeathed a fortune

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 stingy The 49ers will encounter the NFL’s stingiest defense to score against Sunday in Houston. Cam Inman, Mercury News, 23 Oct. 2025 The Wall Street Journal recently profiled the company’s efforts to improve its relations with employees, having formerly been known as stingy but now having raised wages so often that the Harvard Business School is publishing a case study on its experience. Sydney Lake, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2025 The prevailing wisdom is that Medicaid is a losing proposition for health facilities, an insurance program so stingy that many can’t afford to take it. Helen Ouyang, The Atlantic, 21 Oct. 2025 With rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart under center, the Giants appeared to be turning their season around, taking a 19-0 lead into the fourth quarter against the Broncos and their stingy defense. Rohan Nadkarni, NBC news, 20 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for stingy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stingy
Adjective
  • While there have been many fine adaptations of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, Alastair Sim's performance as the miserly, penny-pinching Ebenezer Scrooge elevates this version to must-see status.
    Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Oct. 2025
  • Depp will play the titular role of Ebenezer Scrooge, a misanthropic and miserly businessman in 19th century London who is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future in an effort to save himself from an afterlife of torment.
    Adam B. Vary, Variety, 23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Jessica Knackert, a Milwaukee wildlife educator and biologist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said one reason is that foliage where coyotes like to conceal themselves becomes sparse at this time of year, as trees lose their leaves and snow starts to fall.
    Kelli Arseneau, jsonline.com, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Carson crafts a sparse and reflective modern reimagining that deals with abuse, love and ultimately growth into adulthood.
    Amber McBride, Literary Hub, 5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • Delivering presents and spreading good cheer is not selfish Scott’s idea of a high calling, although the prospect of working only one day a year has its enticements.
    Duane Byrge, HollywoodReporter, 11 Nov. 2025
  • Sometimes those selfish people create progress.
    Kevin Sintumuang, Outside, 6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • Thrombectomy is the gold-standard treatment for major vessel blockages, but access remains scarce.
    Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 11 Nov. 2025
  • Palestinians are now returning to destroyed city blocks, where services are scarce, and access to water, food, and electricity is limited.
    Mohammed R. Mhawish, New Yorker, 11 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • To be clear, most of the blame for this climate crisis goes to the greedy fossil fuel executives and big agriculture executives, their greenwashing PR firms, and the politicians in their pockets.
    Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, Time, 4 Nov. 2025
  • But Septime Webre’s choreography is supposed to have the air of wild and sometimes frenzied social dancing, of Charlestons and Fox Trots and Black Bottoms, of indulging the glorious excesses of the 1920s before the greedier side of the American Dream comes crashing down a few years later.
    David Lyman, Cincinnati Enquirer, 30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The Ministry of Environment blamed this year’s surge on a poor acorn harvest – which drove a similar spate of attacks in 2023.
    Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 7 Nov. 2025
  • Rather, the slow start (by Ovechkin’s standards) to this season seemed due more to poor puck luck.
    Sean Gentille, New York Times, 6 Nov. 2025
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
Adjective
  • Chelsea are famously parsimonious in the transfer market, after all.
    Phil Hay, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2025
  • 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

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Cite this Entry

“Stingy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stingy. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.

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