slim pickings

idiom

informal

: very few good things to choose from

It was slim pickings on the last day of the sale.

Examples of slim pickings in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Offensive guard Phil Haynes There are slim pickings out there for offensive lineman right now because every team is carrying 15-plus offensive linemen on their training camp roster. —

Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 12 June 2024 The bar was completely full, as was the small dining area (with about 12 tables total, so seating is slim pickings, anyway). —

Rachel Bernhard, Journal Sentinel, 20 Feb. 2024 There’s slim pickings for guys like me in that world, unfortunately. —

Zack Sharf, Variety, 21 Feb. 2024 There's slim pickings for guys like me in that world, unfortunately. —

Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 20 Feb. 2024 This also speaks to the slim pickings available on this week’s wire. —

Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Dec. 2023 Though that’s a problem everywhere, the Midwest has particularly slim pickings. —

Alicia Adamczyk, Fortune, 2 Nov. 2023 Farmers Insurance is at least the fourth company—after Bankers Insurance, Centauri Insurance and AIG-subsidiary Lexington Insurance—to pull out from the state in the past year, leaving homeowners with slim pickings and higher property insurance bills. —

Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 12 July 2023 Sales on tower fans are slim pickings so far, but this Early Prime Day deal on the Black and Decker Mini Tower Fan is impressing us right now. —

Stephanie Osmanski, Southern Living, 3 July 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'slim pickings.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.