dürftige

Dürftig is a German adjective meaning meager, scanty, or insufficient in amount or quality. It is used to describe objects, conditions, evidence, or actions that fall short of what is adequate. Common uses include phrases such as eine dürftige Mahlzeit (a meager meal), dürftige Beweise (insufficient or flimsy evidence), or eine dürftige Wohnung (a scanty dwelling). The nuance conveyed is one of inadequacy or sparseness rather than outright defect.

Grammatical notes and forms

Dürftig agrees with the noun it modifies. In attributive position, especially after definite articles or other determiners, the form dürftige appears in singular for several genders (for example der dürftige Mann, das dürftige Kind, die dürftige Frau). In plural, after a definite article, the form is dürftigen (die dürftigen Beweise). Without a definite article, or with an indefinite article in the singular, the adjective takes other endings depending on gender, case, and number (for example ein dürftiger Mann, eine dürftige Mahlzeit, ein dürftiges Kind). Predicative use is also common: Die Beweise sind dürftig.

Noun use and nuance

In rare cases, the attributive adjective can be substantivized as Dürftige, referring to people living in meager or deficient circumstances; such usage is uncommon and context-dependent. In most contexts, dürftig functions as a descriptive adjective and is preferred for describing quantity or quality that is notably lacking.

See also

Synonyms include gering, spärlich, unzureichend, mangelhaft. The term broadly signals insufficiency rather than outright fault and is commonly used in everyday language as well as formal critique.