The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word MEAGRE
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
M
E
A
G
R
E
More clues leading to the result MEAGRE
- Spare silver slipped between adjacent notes
- Skimpy costume a greatcoat conceals
- Fish of poor quality
- Poor game worked on
- Simple clothing article, close to being skimpy
- Almost stingy, almost dismal, always inadequate
- Miserable subsection of loathsome agreement
- Insubstantial lake with silver lining
- Inadequate male meets a bore
- Very little silver, bare boxes
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "inadequate" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case inadequate = meagre.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does MEAGRE mean?
MEAGRE noun- Argyrosomus regius, an edible fish of the family Sciaenidae.
- To make lean.
- Having little flesh; lean; thin.
- Deficient or inferior in amount, quality or extent
- Of a set: such that, considered as a subset of a (usually larger) topological space, it is in a precise sense small or negligible.
- Dry and harsh to the touch (e.g., as chalk).