paltry

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"It's a paltry sum when you think about the number of households on heating oil," he said.

From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026

McDonald’s Chief Executive Chris Kempczinski had taken what social media mocked as a paltry nibble in a video promoting the chain’s new Big Arch burger, or “product,” as the CEO called it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 7, 2026

Another local, Gilberto Herrera, 67, works as a public employee and earns a paltry salary of less than one dollar a month.

From Barron's • Jan. 29, 2026

Natural population growth last year was a paltry 519,000, down from 1.1 million in 2017 and between 1.6 million and 1.9 million during the 2000s.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 27, 2026

“I would far rather burn my whole book,” he told Lyell, “than that he or any man shd think that I had behaved in a paltry spirit.”

From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman