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

Without careful planning to reduce the constellations’ brightness, the team found that, in the most extreme case, the satellites could outnumber visible stars by a factor of 100.

— Arielle Frommer, Scientific American, 20 Aug. 2026
Maneuvering in tight spaces requires careful judgment of each individual case — and not just about which body part is least likely to cause offense when brought into close proximity to a fellow diner.

— Judith Martin, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of careful

Adjective

About one-fifth of Florida’s impoverished elderly people live in the county, state records show.

— Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald, 21 Aug. 2026
Behind the scenes, this gritty, impoverished circus company wrestles with violence, illness and animal cruelty.

— Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of impoverished

Adjective

Not because this generation is somehow softer or more selfish.

— Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Aug. 2026
In essence, charisma is a vehicle for alignment and temporarily eroding the individual or selfish agendas that typically undermine effective group coordination and team collaboration.

— Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of selfish

Adjective

On the other lies a park in one of the Bronx’s poorest communities, built on the site of the former Yankee Stadium after the old home of the Yankees was torn down in 2009 and 2010.

— Sam Blum, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
Iran’s economy was in a dire state before the war too, with poor economic conditions a key driving factor behind the anti-regime demonstrations which kicked off in the Iranian capital city Tehran in 2025.

— Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of poor

Adjective

One of Nader’s grandsons, Shah Rukh, was tortured by a greedy court eunuch named Agha Muhammad to force him to reveal the location of the invaluable diamond.

— Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026
That detail — and revelations that Mangione’s private writings lambasted health insurers as greedy, according to authorities — made the case a fulcrum for debate about the industry and made Mangione a cause célèbre for some of its critics.

— Michael R. Sisak, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of greedy

Adjective

While figuring out the legal bureaucracies surrounding Sam’s money, the working-class siblings complain about their physical proximity to their broke friends.

— Paula Mejía, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
The Democratic National Committee is both broke and broken, a New York Times bombshell last weekend detailed.

— Philip Elliott, Time, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of broke

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 24 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of penurious

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