measly

English

WOTD – 6 May 2017

A child with measles

Alternative forms

• measley (uncommon)

Etymology

From measle (“singular of measles”) +‎ -y; the word measle is either from Middle Dutch masel (“a blister filled with blood; a pustule, a skin blemish”), or Middle Low German masel (“a red skin blemish”), from Proto-Germanic *masuraz (“a knot or scar in wood; a knarl”), from *mas-, *mēs- (“a spot; a sore; a scar”), from Proto-Indo-European *mos- (“a skin sore”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmiːzli/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmizli/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːzli
• Hyphenation: meas‧ly

Adjective

measly (comparative measlier, superlative measliest)

1. Particularly of pigs or pork: infected with larval tapeworms or trichinae (parasitic roundworms). [from late 16th c.]
   • 1847, William Youatt, The Pig: A Treatise on the Breeds, Management, Feeding, and Medical Treatment, of Swine; with Directions for Salting Pork, and Curing Bacon and Hams, page 113:

     Then take five or six apples, pick out the cores and fill up the holes thus made with flour of brimstone; stop up the holes and cast in the apples to the measly hog.

2. Of a person: infected with measles.
   • 1902, The Epworth Herald:

     A measly boy, he looked like a tramp, probably one of the street boys from the village, just walked up here and made himself at home, and when I told him to leave, he wouldn't.

3. (figuratively, informal) Small (especially contemptibly small) in amount. [from mid 19th c.]

   Synonyms: miserable, paltry, trifling

   For one whole day's work all I was given was twenty measly pounds.

   • 2004, Richard Rizun, Ora, Trafford Publishing, →ISBN:

     The visiting tourists eagerly forked over a measly two dollars per group to their guides as payment for their services. This amount was measly sum to the givers, but a princely sum to the takers.

   • 2010, Marylee Daniel Mitcham, Blacktime Song by Rosalie Wolfe, Strategic Book Publishing, →ISBN, page 127:

     So it wasn't a hotel, as I said in my novel, just a measly motel. But to me it was like the First measly motel, and I remember laughing about the things I was saying straight from my unconscious to both his and God's ear.

Translations

small in amount

• Czech: ubohý (cs), mizerný (cs)
• German: mickrig (de)
• Russian: жа́лкий (ru) (žálkij), ничто́жный (ru) (ničtóžnyj), мизерный (ru) (mizernyj)
• Spanish: miserable (es), mísero (es)
• Swedish: ynklig (sv), futtig (sv)

References

• “measly”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Anagrams

• Lameys, Leamys, Lemays, Maleys, Mayles, Mealys, amyles, samely, yealms