miserlyadj.
/ˈmʌɪzəli/, U.S. /ˈmaɪzərli/ 1. Relating to or characteristic of a miser; mean, stingy, parsimonious. Also in figurative context.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > retaining > niggardliness or meanness > [adjective] > miserly
gnedy?c1225
miserable1484
misera1500
muckeringa1525
pinchpence1540
snudging1553
pinchpenny1582
miserly1593
mising1595
scraping1597
chuff-penny1603
wretched1652
nabalitic1653
skinflint1737
nippit1808
Scrooge-like1976
1593 T. Nashe Christs Teares 29 b If there were any that had dudgen-olde coughing miserly Fathers they could not endure.
1603 H. Crosse Vertues Common-wealth sig. I2v [He] must instantly..lash out that riotously, that his father got miserly.
1678 E. Phillips New World of Words (new ed.) App. at Nig A miserly, sordid, pinch-gut fellow.
1763 A. Murphy Citizen ii. i. 25 An old miserly good for nothing skin-flint.
1869 J. R. Lowell Under Willows vii. 163 To spend in all things else, But of old friends to be most miserly.
1875 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) III. 104 The youth who has had a mean and miserly bringing up.
1915 Nebraska State Jrnl. 7 Sept. 6/3 We once knew a miserly old snollygoster who used to look in a mirror to see the reflection of a saint.
1984 V. S. Naipaul Finding Centre iv. 61 A miserly and cruel man who counted every biscuit in the tin,..and,..drove her out of the house.
2. Meagre in quantity, scanty.
ΚΠ
1952 J. Steinbeck East of Eden xxiii. 288 There had been a little rain and a fuzz of miserly grass had started up.
1987 Q Oct. 72/1 When the volume is turned up—the machine offers only a miserly five watts per channel—quality suffers quite considerably.
1997 Football Italia July 53/3 Juve finished with..the best defensive record in the League—a miserly 24 goals conceded in 34 matches.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1593