chinchy

Thân thiện

He was too chinchy to buy a round of drinks for his friends.

Definition

Adjective: 1. Embarrassingly stingy; miserly to a fault: Describes a person or their behavior as being extremely unwilling to spend money, to a degree that is considered shameful, socially awkward, or contemptible. It implies a level of stinginess that goes beyond simple thrift.

Usage and Examples

• Describing a person:
  • He's too chinchy to ever buy a round of drinks for his friends.
  • Don't be so chinchy; it's just a small tip for good service.
• Describing behavior or actions:
  • Offering to split a $2 dessert bill is just chinchy.
  • Her chinchy habit of reusing paper napkins embarrassed her family.

Advanced Usage and Nuance

• The word chinchy carries a strong negative connotation of judgment and social disapproval. It criticizes not just the act of saving money, but the lack of generosity and the pettiness associated with it.
• It is often used in informal or colloquial contexts to express frustration or contempt for someone's parsimony.

Variants and Related Words

• Chintzy (adjective): This is a more common variant spelling and usage of the same word. It can also mean "gaudy" or "of cheap quality," but its primary meaning overlaps with "chinchy" as "stingy."
  • He gave a chintzy donation to the charity drive.

Synonyms

• Stingy: Unwilling to give or spend.
• Miserly: Like a miser; obsessed with hoarding wealth.
• Parsimonious: Excessively sparing or frugal.
• Penny-pinching: Extremely careful with money.
• Tightfisted: Unwilling to spend or give money.

Antonyms

• Generous
• Munificent
• Lavish
• Open-handed

Idioms and Related Phrases

• Cheap skate (noun, informal): A person who is unwilling to spend money; a synonym for a chinchy person.
  • He's a real cheap skate; he never contributes to office collections.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. embarrassingly stingy

Từ đồng nghĩa

• cheap
• chintzy