Word of the Day for Friday, December 26, 2008
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paltry \PAWL-tree\, adjective:
paltry \PAWL-tree\, adjective:
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1. almost worthless; trifling
1. almost worthless; trifling
2. of no worth; contemptible, despicable
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If the B.O. spends like he promised during the campaign, the dollar will be worth only a paltry sum of spendable money.
--Spy Maker, JSA's Blog
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by 1565, probably associated with dialectic palt, pelt "trash," cognate with Middle Low German and East Frisian palte "rag," and Middle Dutch palt "broken or torn fragment." Comparative and superlative forms are paltrier and paltriest.
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