contemptibly small in amount; "a measly tip"; "the company donated a miserable $100 for flood relief"; "a paltry wage"; "almost depleted his miserable store of dried beans"
disapproval If you describe an amount, quantity, or size as measly, you are critical of it because it is very small or inadequate. The average British bathroom measures a measly 3.5 square metres. a measly twelve-year-old like me. very small and disappointing in size, quantity, or value - used to show disapproval (measly (17-19 centuries), from measles)