Measly

Measly

Adjective · /ˈmiː.zli/

Definition

(Informal) ridiculously small in size, quantity, or value; contemptibly meagre or inadequate; (literal, archaic) of, relating to, or affected by measles; (of a pig or other animal) infected with a larval tapeworm that produces spots in the flesh.

Origin

From measles + the suffix -ly. The literal sense — relating to measles — is the original. The extended sense — infected with tapeworm larvae producing measles-like spots in pig flesh — was also literal. The figurative sense of contemptibly small or meagre developed by association with something spotted, worthless, or diseased, and is now the dominant everyday meaning. The word is informal in its figurative use.