pittance
noun
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It's a pity when you haven't anything but a pittance. And in fact, pity and pittance share etymological roots. The Middle English word pittance came from Anglo-French pitance, meaning "pity" or "piety." Originally, a pittance was a gift or bequest to a religious community, or a small charitable gift. Ultimately, the word comes from the Latin pietas, meaning "piety" or "compassion." Our words pity and piety come from pietas as well.
Synonyms
Examples of pittance in a Sentence
Clarence E. Hill Jr., Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 May 2024
That’s a pittance, though, compared to the 50,000 to 60,000 people who flooded into the county during the housing bubble of the early 2000s.
—Lori Weisberg, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Mar. 2024
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pittance.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Pittance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pittance. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
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pittance
noun
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