SPARINGLY Synonyms: 43 Similar and Opposite Words

sparingly

adverb

Definition of sparingly

as in poorly

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of sparingly Meanwhile, Milwaukee has used Uecker’s intellectual property sparingly. — Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 23 Oct. 2026 And the absence of the Heat’s typical high-effort defense was noticeable, especially against a team like Minnesota that sparingly moves the ball around before chucking it up from long distance. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 22 Oct. 2026 Use it sparingly on fine hair, where a heavy hand can weigh strands down. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 21 Oct. 2026 Use sparingly, as vinegar’s acidity can damage rubber gaskets over time. — Jolie Kerr, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Oct. 2026 Medical imaging tools help doctors learn more about a patient’s potential health problems without putting them under the knife—but many expose patients to radiation and should be used sparingly. — Alice Park, Time, 15 Oct. 2026 If garlic or onions regularly leave you smelling off, Cleveland Clinic suggests using them sparingly or swapping in herbs and spices. — Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Oct. 2026 Although it’s been used sparingly since first coming to market more than 25 years ago, Foamposite remains one of Nike‘s most emblematic technologies. — Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2026 Use hydrogen peroxide sparingly, as too much can waste product and may yellow clothes in sunlight. — Daley Quinn, Southern Living, 24 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sparingly

Adverb

Things were going poorly even before Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign ran the most offensive ad of the year.

— Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2026
His season started poorly with an injury in the first game of the year.

— OutKick, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of poorly

Adverb

Shelie Miller, a University of Michigan professor who studies the environmental impacts of products, said Halloween costumes, like fast fashion, are often made cheaply from plastic materials.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
That's the reason why a major trend in military spheres is to create counter-drone systems that are not only effective, but can be built cheaply and in vast numbers in a short time.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of cheaply

Adverb

Maines lived frugally and generously left his estate to charity, funding a scholarship at his alma mater, SUNY at Canton, and supporting local journalism at The Asheville Watchdog.

— Sally Kestin, Sun Sentinel, 11 Sep. 2026
The family lived frugally, Ferguson said, since Good’s partner sold a company and didn’t work as Good attended graduate school online.

— PJ Green, Kansas City Star, 8 Jan. 2026

Definition of frugally

Adverb

After all, no company wants to buy the first few that are economically prohibitive, so the Army is jumping in financially and then helping the economies of scale take over.

— Jordan Blum, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2026
Increasingly, what is economically efficient is no longer politically tenable.

— Keyu Jin, Time, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of economically

Adverb

If a good could be inexpensively produced elsewhere, everyone benefitted.

— Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
After recently visiting Micron headquarters in Boise, Idaho, Jim was even more convinced that the chipmaker is trading too inexpensively at only six times fiscal 2027 earnings estimates.

— Natasha Abellard, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of inexpensively

Adverb

The score by Don Ellis is shrewdly and sparely used, and the movie is uniformly well-acted, by a cast that also includes Roy Scheider, Tony LoBianco, and Harold Gary.

— Craig Fisher, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2026
Maps show the location of the crash is sparely populated and the two-lane road has no street lighting.

— Mark Price, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025

Definition of sparely

Adverb

Limón would like to see the state stop subsidizing corporations who pay so meagerly that their employees qualify for Medi-Cal.

— Anita Chabria, Mercury News, 3 June 2026
When opportunities arise, whether lowly paid or not, we’re often left with no other choice than to take the role that pays meagerly.

— Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 1 Sep. 2025

Definition of meagerly

Adverb

Time, not thriftily spent but flagrantly wasted at cards or the wheel, is brought to a standstill right at the moment of its greatest potentiality—this would have to be the ultimate payoff.

— Artforum, Artforum, 28 Sep. 2026
That’s frustrating considering the format has always been thriftily priced.

— Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 14 Aug. 2025

Definition of thriftily

Browse Nearby Words

sparing

sparingly

spark

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Sparingly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sparingly. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of sparingly

adverb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

grotesque

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes