meager
meager — adjective
- meagerpositive
- meagerercomparative
- meagerestsuperlative
1. Describes an amount, size, or quality that falls short of what is needed.
Describes an amount, size, or quality that falls short of what is needed.
The family's meager savings could not cover even one month's rent.
After months of dry weather, the farm's meager harvest of corn worried the whole village.
meager + harvest/crop (amount collocation)
Mira's meager salary as a trainee barely paid for her bus fare.
The report offered only meager evidence to back up its surprising claims.
Daichi found the soup's meager flavour disappointing after the long wait.
- scant
more formal; used almost always about amounts, not quality
- sparse
thinly distributed or scattered; not about strength or richness
- insufficient
more formal and absolute; often used in official contexts
- paltry
implies contempt or scorn; stronger negative judgment than 'meager'
- ample
more than enough in size or amount
- abundant
plentiful; present in large quantities
- substantial
large in amount or importance
用法筆記
Frequently used with nouns of quantity or quality (salary, resources, evidence, harvest). The British spelling is 'meagre'.