Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Grudging and petty in giving or spending.
- adjective Meanly small; scanty or meager.
from The Century Dictionary.
- In the manner of a niggard; sparingly; parsimoniously.
- Like a niggard; sordidly parsimonious or sparing; close-fisted; stingy: as, a niggardly person.
- Characteristic of a niggard; meanly parsimonious; scanty: as, niggardly entertainment; niggardly thrift.
- Synonyms Parsimonious, Stingy, etc.(see
penurious ), illiberal, close-fisted, saving, chary.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Meanly covetous or avaricious in dealing with others; stingy; niggard.
- adverb In a niggard manner.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective
Withholding for thesake ofmeanness ;stingy ,miserly . - adverb In a
parsimonious way;sparingly ,stingily .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective petty or reluctant in giving or spending
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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There's a broad difference between using the term niggardly - which has a totally different meaning and etymology to that of the N word - and saying that a black man is "uppity."
Live-blogging night 4 of the Republican Convention. Ann Althouse 2008
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A city councilman lost his job because he used the word niggardly in a report.
Eastwood thinks political correctness has made society humourless Ed Gorman 2009
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That is not the only case, there was the response to the use of the word niggardly as it related to a budget matter, but the left wing community went wild on the white man who made the statement.
Think Progress » CNN’s Glenn Beck Calls Anti-Gay Slur Simply A ‘Naughty Name’ 2007
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A climate where the word niggardly is dangerous to your employment prospects.
Patrick Mercer, who resigned today... Rachel 2007
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Hell, I even hesitate to use the adjective "niggardly" -- an absolutely legitimate word dating back to Middle English -- for fear that it and/or I will be misunderstood.
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It's like the word "niggardly" -- it sounds racist, and it looks racist, but (historically, at least) it's not.
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It's like the word "niggardly" -- it sounds racist, and it looks racist, but (historically, at least) it's not.
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It's like the word "niggardly" -- it sounds racist, and it looks racist, but (historically, at least) it's not.
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He has discouraged me from using the word niggardly in polite conversation because of its similarity to another N word.
Word Court 2007
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He has discouraged me from using the word niggardly in polite conversation because of its similarity to another N word.
Word Court 2007
pomegranate commented on the word niggardly
One of my favorite words, but almost everytime I use it, people get offended. "Niggardly" has nothing to do with "niggars," people!
December 4, 2007
rolig commented on the word niggardly
but everything to do with niggards!
December 5, 2007
john commented on the word niggardly
I understand that the only overt connection between this word and the slur is phonetic, but you have an impoverished notion of language and a tin ear if you're not conscious of its evocative power.
I'm not saying that "niggardly" shouldn't be used, but baiting those who pause at its use is itself niggardly, both pedantic and small minded.
December 5, 2007
bilby commented on the word niggardly
Visitors to Australia are often surprised to see Coon Cheese being sold in the supermarket. The current (and previous) owners of the brand have vigorously defended the name in honour of the inventor of the cheese's original formula, a certain E.W. Coon. Given that the name has nothing to do with racial abuse, I really don't have a problem with it. If anything it probably helps to defuse the potency of coon used as a slur because to the Australian ear it sounds vaguely silly.
I don't think I've enlightened the commentary on niggardly very much. If I wasn't a vegan I'd go and have some cheese right now. Sheeesz.
December 5, 2007
sionnach commented on the word niggardly
Normally I would agree with John's eminently reasonable view, which I think of as essentially Garneresque (be aware of the likely impact of a particular choice of term or expression on one's readers/listeners, and if it seems to be undesirably distracting, consider an alternative; Garner argues for this approach on purely pragmatic grounds).
But then I recall that there are cases on record of people losing their jobs for using the word*, and I think that we do have some obligation to take a stand against rampant stupidity and ignorance.
niggardly brouhaha
December 5, 2007
john commented on the word niggardly
Sionnach, I agree that the incident you link to is a travesty. I can't state it any better than the author, who calls it "stupidity masquerading as sensitivity." I'd like to think there's a middle ground where people can be respectful without resorting to mindless censorship.
Sorry if I was a bit heated there, I didn't need to be calling names. I'm no fan of political correctness, but I value politeness, and should have shown more myself.
December 5, 2007
tbtabby commented on the word niggardly
Dinosaur Comics used it.
March 1, 2009
whichbe commented on the word niggardly
“Be not niggardly of what costs thee nothing, as courtesy, counsel, & countenance.�? --Benjamin Franklin
June 17, 2009
dailyword commented on the word niggardly
Watson used this word when he was talking about a female client with two children whose husband had just died and she was about to be turned out of her house.
June 9, 2012
slumry commented on the word niggardly
It is so odd that all of the examples shown refer to the word as misconstrued. Does this misconstruction constitute an eggcorn?
May 6, 2015
qms commented on the word niggardly
See https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Controversies_about_the_word_"niggardly"
July 19, 2016