miserly

/ˈmaɪzərli/

/ˈmaɪzəli/

Miserly people are stingy with their money and not likely to be generous, like Ebenezer Scrooge himself.

The adjective miserly evolved from the Latin word miser, which means “unhappy, wretched.” Nowadays, it's generally used to describe someone who hoards their money and presumably is miserable because of it. But be careful not to mix up the word miserly with misery — even though it can often be the unfortunate mental outcome of interacting with a miserly individual.

Definitions of miserly

1. adjective

   (used of persons or behavior) characterized by or indicative of lack of generosity
   “he left a miserly tip”

   synonyms: mean, mingy, tight

   stingy, ungenerous

   unwilling to spend