Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Meager \Mea"ger\, Meagre \Mea"gre\, v. t.
To make lean. [Obs.]
Meagre \Mea"gre\, n. [F. maigre.] (Zo["o]l.)
A large European sci[ae]noid fish ({Sci[ae]na umbra} or {S.
aquila}), having white bloodless flesh. It is valued as a
food fish. [Written also {maigre}.]
Meager \Mea"ger\, Meagre \Mea"gre\, a. [OE. merge, F. maigre, L.
macer; akin to D. & G. mager, Icel. magr, and prob. to Gr. ?
long. Cf. {Emaciate}, {Maigre}.]
1. Destitue of, or having little, flesh; lean.
Meager were his looks; Sharp misery had worn him to
the bones. --Shak.
2. Destitute of richness, fertility, strength, or the like;
defective in quantity, or poor in quality; poor; barren;
scanty in ideas; wanting strength of diction or affluence
of imagery. ``Meager soil.'' --Dryden.
Of secular habits and meager religious belief. --I.
Taylor.
His education had been but meager. --Motley.
3. (Min.) Dry and harsh to the touch, as chalk.
Syn: Thin; lean; lank; gaunt; starved; hungry; poor;
emaciated; scanty; barren.
Source : WordNet®
meagre
adj : deficient in amount or quality or extent; "meager
resources"; "meager fare" [syn: {meager}, {meagerly}]
[ant: {ample}]