measly

Etymology

measle (“singular of measles”) +‎ -y; the word measle is either from Middle Dutch masel (“a blister filled with blood; a pustule, a skin blemish”), or Middle Low German masel (“a red skin blemish”), from Proto-Germanic *masuraz (“a knot or scar in wood; a knarl”), from *mas-, *mēs- (“a spot; a sore; a scar”), from Proto-Indo-European *mos- (“a skin sore”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmiːzli/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmizli/
• Hyphenation: meas‧ly

Adjective

measly (comparative measlier, superlative measliest)

1. Particularly of pigs or pork: infected with larval tapeworms or trichinae (parasitic roundworms).
2. Of a person: infected with measles.
3. Small (especially contemptibly small) in amount; miserable, paltry, trifling.

References

• “measly” (US) / “measly” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.

Anagrams

• Lameys, Lemays, Maleys, Mayles, Mealys, amyles, samely, yealms