PENURIOUS Synonyms: 156 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'penurious' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of penurious are close , miserly , niggardly , parsimonious , and stingy . While all these words mean "being unwilling or showing unwillingness to share with others," penurious implies niggardliness that gives an appearance of actual poverty. // the penurious eccentric bequeathed a fortune

Q: Where would 'close' be a reasonable alternative to 'penurious'?

While the synonyms close and penurious are close in meaning, close suggests keeping a tight grip on one's money and possessions. // folks who are very close when charity calls

Q: When might 'miserly' be a better fit than 'penurious'?

While in some cases nearly identical to penurious , miserly suggests a sordid avariciousness and a morbid pleasure in hoarding. // a miserly couple devoid of social conscience

Q: When is it sensible to use 'niggardly' instead of 'penurious'?

Although the words niggardly and penurious have much in common, niggardly implies giving or spending the very smallest amount possible. // the niggardly amount budgeted for the town library

Q: In what contexts can 'parsimonious' take the place of 'penurious'?

The words parsimonious and penurious can be used in similar contexts, but parsimonious suggests a frugality so extreme as to lead to stinginess. // a parsimonious lifestyle notably lacking in luxuries

Q: When can 'stingy' be used instead of 'penurious'?

The meanings of stingy and penurious largely overlap; however, stingy implies a marked lack of generosity. // a stingy child, not given to sharing

penurious

adjective

pə-ˈnu̇r-ē-əs

Definition of penurious

as in careful

giving or sharing as little as possible the company's penurious management could not be convinced of the need to earmark more money for research and development

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in impoverished

lacking money or material possessions the most penurious members of the community are forced to depend on the services of the food bank

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective penurious contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of penurious are close, miserly, niggardly, parsimonious, and stingy. While all these words mean "being unwilling or showing unwillingness to share with others," penurious implies niggardliness that gives an appearance of actual poverty.

the penurious eccentric bequeathed a fortune

Where would close be a reasonable alternative to penurious?

While the synonyms close and penurious are close in meaning, 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 penurious?

While in some cases nearly identical to penurious, miserly suggests a sordid avariciousness and a morbid pleasure in hoarding.

a miserly couple devoid of social conscience

When is it sensible to use niggardly instead of penurious?

Although the words niggardly and penurious have much in common, niggardly implies giving or spending the very smallest amount possible.

the niggardly amount budgeted for the town library

In what contexts can parsimonious take the place of penurious?

The words parsimonious and penurious can be used in similar contexts, but parsimonious suggests a frugality so extreme as to lead to stinginess.

a parsimonious lifestyle notably lacking in luxuries

When can stingy be used instead of penurious?

The meanings of stingy and penurious largely overlap; however, stingy implies a marked lack of generosity.

a stingy child, not given to sharing

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 penurious There’s a cast of wanderers, visionaries, and itinerants, the self-educated and self-published, a long lineage of cranks and outcasts, mostly penurious, always opinionated, stretching away into the mists of pseudohistory. — Hari Kunzru, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026 Even so, the general picture of a mother’s absence and a daughter’s understandable resentment at having had to pick up the maternal slack in penurious conditions comes through loud and clear. — Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2024 Whatever was going on between the two rich men, the murder investigation presents a profound, perhaps insurmountable challenge to the penurious tropical police force. — Nina Burleigh, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 May 2024 Both album and turntable were all the rage, and the Technics was the first quality direct-drive turntable that a penurious college student could afford. — Robert Ross, Robb Report, 20 Mar. 2024 See All Example Sentences for penurious

Recent Examples of Synonyms for penurious

Adjective

Full-scale, 10-foot Hulk standins helped actors and camera crews judge his dimensions on set, and even his pants required careful attention.

— Davide Abbatescianni, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
Turning a field into a recognizable maze requires specialized planning and careful execution.

— Alexa Liacko, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of careful

Adjective

The impoverished Reds work as slave labor in the mines of Mars, while the super-strong Golds rule the solar system and war on each other.

— Jordan Moreau, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
Prosecutors accuse him of participating in schemes to divert hundreds of millions of dollars from Venezuelan government programs intended to provide housing, food and other necessities to the country’s impoverished population.

— Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of impoverished

Adjective

Also on Weekend Update, James Austin Johnson portrayed a selfish Kevin O’Leary, the Shark Tank investor who is backing a massive data center campus in northwest Utah.

— William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2026
That’s also how Violet is thinking about their portrayal of Maureen, whose eccentric performance art and selfish behavior often give the character a bad rap.

— Ellise Shafer, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of selfish

Adjective

Measles usually kills two or three people in every 1,000 cases, the WHO says, but the disease can be more deadly in poorer nations because of factors such as malnutrition.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 18 Oct. 2026
That receiver sends that poor defender into next week at the pylon.

— Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of poor

Adjective

John Wayne and Gary Cooper, like Ken-san, often played anachronistic loners from a disappearing Arcadia that was being destroyed by hard-nosed modernizers—greedy bankers, railway owners, big-city politicians.

— Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Katz said the rapid and steep rate movements give investors a chance to buy from the fearful and sell to the greedy.

— Hayley Cuccinello, CNBC, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of greedy

Adjective

Chastain goes for broke with melodrama as both the real and fake Mommies.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
The fact that the region’s broke local government is paying a total of 12 million for a renewable partnership with the Centre Pompidou doesn’t help.

— Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of broke

Adjective

In my own cautionary tale, Sister needs redemption as much as Scrooge does; events of the past have made her bitter, ungenerous, and generally no fun to be around.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Oct. 2026
Despite recent increases, the state pension is relatively ungenerous, though Britons do have good private pensions.

— The Week UK, TheWeek, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of ungenerous

Adjective

Traumatized into silence, the de facto orphan stays living with the kindly but guilt-ridden, grieving and impecunious Hiroshi.

— Jessica Kiang, Variety, 12 June 2026
Since then, it has been performed across much of the world, being ideally suited to these impecunious times and very masterfully written.

— Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026

Definition of impecunious

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“Penurious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penurious. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of penurious

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