Word of the Day

: March 4, 2013

paltry

adjective PAWL-tree

What It Means

1 : inferior, trashy

2 : mean, despicable

3 : trivial

4 : meager, measly

paltry in Context

Anna told us she was tired of engaging in paltry work and longed to do something meaningful with her life.

"Monday, I tried to cheer up snow fans who have been frowning at Seattle's paltry 0.6" of snowfall this winter by stating that February has had its share of snowfall over the years." - From a post by meteorologist Scott Sistek on KOMONews.com's weather blog, January 29, 2013

Did You Know?

Before "paltry" was an adjective, it was a noun meaning "trash." That now obsolete noun in turn came from "palt" or "pelt," dialect terms meaning "a piece of coarse cloth," or broadly, "trash." The adjective "paltry" first meant "trashy," but it currently has a number of senses, all generally meaning "no good." A "paltry house" might be run-down and unfit for occupancy; a "paltry trick" is a trick that is low-down and dirty; a "paltry excuse" is a trivial one; and a "paltry sum" is small and insufficient.