What does beggarly mean?
"Beggarly" is an adjective used to describe something — typically an amount of money, a wage, or a provision — that is so small, poor, or inadequate as to seem almost insulting. It can also describe a person's appearance or manner as shabby, mean, or suggestive of a beggar. The word carries a distinctly pejorative tone: to call a payment "beggarly" is not merely to note that it is modest but to condemn it as unworthy of acceptance. In literary and rhetorical contexts it lends forceful emphasis, appearing frequently in older English prose and drama, including Shakespeare, where it mocks trifling sums. Though somewhat old-fashioned today, it remains a vivid alternative to plainer terms like "meager" or "paltry," particularly in British English. Its evocative connection to poverty gives it emotional weight that makes it useful when a writer wants to express indignation rather than simple measurement.
adjectiveLamentably small, meager, or inadequate in amount or quality; also, characteristic of or resembling a beggar in appearance or manner.
- (of a quantity or amount) pitifully small or inadequate; meager
- resembling or befitting a beggar; mean, shabby, or contemptible in appearance or character
"The charity was embarrassed by the beggarly sum it managed to raise at the gala."
"The workers walked out over what they considered beggarly pay for such dangerous work."
"He arrived at the reunion in beggarly clothes that betrayed years of hardship."
Despite its name, calling something "beggarly" is really an insult to its size, not to any actual beggar — Shakespeare used it to mock sums too small to bother counting.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of beggarly
"Beggarly" derives from the noun "beggar," which entered English in the Middle Ages, combined with the adjectival suffix "-ly." The ultimate origin of "beggar" itself is uncertain, though it is often connected to Old French "begard" and may relate to the Beguines, lay religious communities of the Low Countries. The adjective has been attested since at least the sixteenth century, and it appears in the works of Elizabethan writers, including Shakespeare. Related forms include the noun "beggary," denoting the state of extreme poverty.
Related word forms
How beggarly is actually used
Somewhat literary and slightly old-fashioned in tone, "beggarly" carries strong negative connotation and is often used to express contempt or indignation toward an amount considered insultingly insufficient. It is more common in British than American English.
Easily confused with beggarly
"Beggary" is a noun meaning the state of being a beggar or extreme poverty, while "beggarly" is an adjective describing something meager, inadequate, or beggar-like.
"Niggardly" means stingy or unwilling to give, whereas "beggarly" describes something so small or poor as to be unworthy of notice.