Pittance \Pit"tance\ (p[i^]t"tans), n. [OE. pitance, pitaunce,
F. pitance; cf. It. pietanza, LL. pitancia, pittantia,
pictantia; perh. fr. L. pietas pity, piety, or perhaps akin
to E. petty. Cf. Petty, and Pity.]
1. An allowance of food bestowed in charity; a mess of
victuals; hence, a small charity gift; a dole. "A good
pitaunce." --Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]
One half only of this pittance was ever given him in
money. --Macaulay.
[1913 Webster]
2. A meager portion, quantity, or allowance; an
inconsiderable salary or compensation. "The small pittance
of learning they received." --Swift.
[1913 Webster]
The inconsiderable pittance of faithful professors.
--Fuller.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
pittance
n : an inadequate payment; "they work all day for a mere
pittance"
WordNet (r) 2.0
75 Moby Thesaurus words for "pittance":
ace, alms, alms fee, atom, bit, charity, collection, contribution,
dab, dole, donation, donative, dot, dram, dribble, driblet, dwarf,
farthing, fleck, flyspeck, fragment, gobbet, grain, granule, groat,
hair, half rations, handful, handout, inadequacy, insufficiency,
iota, jot, little, little bit, mere subsistence, minim, minimum,
minutiae, mite, modicum, molecule, mote, nutshell, offering,
offertory, ounce, particle, peanuts, pebble, pinch, point, scrap,
scrimption, scruple, shoestring, short allowance, short commons,
small potatoes, smidgen, smitch, speck, spoonful, spot,
starvation wages, subscription, thimbleful, tiny bit, tithe,
tittle, trace, trifling amount, trivia, votive offering, whit
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
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