their puny efforts to stop the flooding
English dictionary. 2014.
Puny — Pu ny, a. [Compar. {Punier}; superl. {Puniest}.] [F. pu[^i]t[ e] younger, later born, OF. puisn[ e]; puis afterwards (L. post; see {Post }) + n[ e] born, L. natus. See {Natal}, and cf. {Puisne}.] Imperfectly developed in size or vigor; small and… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Puny — Pu ny, n. A youth; a novice. [R.] Fuller. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
puny — index negligible, null (insignificant), paltry, petty Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
puny — Mot Monosíl·lab Nom masculí … Diccionari Català-Català
puny — 1540s, inferior in rank, from M.Fr. puîné, from O.Fr. puisné born later, younger (12c., contrasted with aisné first born ), from puis afterward (from V.L. *postius, from L. postea, from post after ) + O.Fr. né born, from L. natus … Etymology dictionary
puny — *petty, trivial, trifling, paltry, measly, picayunish, picayune Analogous words: feeble, *weak, frail, infirm: *small, little, diminutive: slight, tenuous (see THIN adj) … New Dictionary of Synonyms
puny — [adj] small, insignificant diminutive, feeble, fragile, frail, half pint*, inconsequential, inferior, infirm, little, measly*, minor, niggling*, nothing, paltry, peanut*, peewee*, petty, picayune, piddling*, pint sized*, runt, shrimp*, small fry* … New thesaurus
puny — ► ADJECTIVE (punier, puniest) 1) small and weak. 2) meagre. DERIVATIVES punily adverb puniness noun. ORIGIN phonetic spelling of PUISNE(Cf. ↑ … English terms dictionary
puny — [pyo͞o′nē] adj. punier, puniest [Fr puîné, born later < OFr puisné < puis, after + né < L natus, born: see NATURE] of inferior size, strength, or importance; weak; slight … English World dictionary
puny — pu|ny [ˈpju:ni] adj [Date: 1500 1600; : Old French; Origin: puisné younger , from puis afterward + né born ] 1.) a puny person is small, thin, and weak ▪ a puny little guy ▪ puny arms 2.) not effective or impressive puny effort/attempt … Dictionary of contemporary English
