poor
Americanadjective
-
having little or no money, goods, or other means of support.
She came from a poor family struggling to survive.
- Synonyms:
- straitened, necessitous, poverty-stricken, penniless, destitute, impoverished, indigent, needy
-
Law. dependent upon charity or public support.
-
(of a country, institution, etc.) meagerly supplied or endowed with resources or funds.
-
characterized by or showing poverty.
-
deficient or lacking in something specified.
a region poor in mineral deposits.
- Synonyms:
- meager
-
faulty or inferior, as in construction.
poor workmanship.
- Synonyms:
- shabby, unsatisfactory
-
(of land or soil) lacking abundance or productivity.
poor soil.
- Synonyms:
- unfruitful, barren, sterile
- Antonyms:
- fertile
-
excessively lean or emaciated, as cattle.
-
of an inferior, inadequate, or unsatisfactory kind.
poor health.
-
lacking in skill, ability, or training.
a poor cook.
-
deficient in moral excellence; cowardly, abject, or mean.
-
scanty, meager, or paltry in amount or number.
a poor audience.
-
They shared their poor meal with a stranger.
-
The poor dog was limping.
noun
idioms
-
poor as Job's turkey, extremely poor.
-
poor as a church mouse, extremely poor.
adjective
-
-
lacking financial or other means of subsistence; needy
-
( as collective noun; preceded by the )
the poor
-
-
characterized by or indicating poverty
the country had a poor economy
-
deficient in amount; scanty or inadequate
a poor salary
-
badly supplied (with resources, materials, etc)
a region poor in wild flowers
-
lacking in quality; inferior
-
giving no pleasure; disappointing or disagreeable
a poor play
-
(prenominal) deserving of pity; unlucky
poor John is ill again
-
a (cheaper) substitute for something
Pronunciation
In North and North Midland U.S. English, the vowel of poor is most often . Poor and sure thus contrast with pour and shore: , versus , or , . In the South Midland and South, the vowel of poor is generally or (often with the final (r) dropped), which means that in these areas, poor and pour are homophones, as are sure and shore. Both types of pronunciation exist in the British Isles.
Synonym Usage
Poor, impecunious, impoverished, penniless refer to those lacking money. Poor is the simple term for the condition of lacking means to obtain the comforts of life: a very poor family. Impecunious often suggests that the poverty is a consequence of unwise habits: an impecunious actor. Impoverished often implies a former state of greater plenty, from which one has been reduced: the impoverished aristocracy. Penniless may mean destitute, or it may apply simply to a temporary condition of being without funds: The widow was left penniless with three small children.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of poor
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English pov(e)re, from Old French povre, from Latin pauper; see pauper
Explanation
Poor describes having little of something. If you lack needed food and shelter, you're poor, and if you fall below a standard or don't even try, you're giving a poor performance. Empty pockets and empty efforts both mean poor. Rich or wealthy often serve as opposites of poor. If you have material things, you're rich, and if you don't, you're poor. You can be full of knowledge but get poor grades if you're not studying, or you might be poor in terms of money but rich in friends and kindness. Poor can also be used as a noun, as in "Charity is aimed at helping the poor."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
And now, with victory in sight, a poor chip had left him with a 14-footer for par.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Critics dinged the Argentine squad for poor sportsmanship in the wake of the loss.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
He started a charitable foundation of his own, Bay Scholars, which helps poor and underserved youth attend Catholic high schools throughout the area.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
Rather than treating obesity simply as the result of poor choices, the country's new law recognises it as a chronic disease influenced by biology, environment and social circumstances.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
When I was poor, after his death I was driven to it again.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
For national tournaments, the corollary is how poorer countries always have to match up against richer ones for regional faceoffs and qualifiers that culminate in the quadrennial dream that is the World Cup.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
Along the highway from Ankara airport to the city centre, municipal workers have been planting flowers and installing giant billboards to shield views of dilapidated homes and poorer neighbourhoods.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
The poorer you are, Mr. Moore argues, the less you have to lose, and almost anyone who started without capital had to borrow to get started.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
The fall in sales comes after the government withdrew a controversial grant scheme to help poorer households install the technology - which can help tackle emissions by heating homes using electricity instead of gas.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
These were such people as he had known as a boy in the Northward Vale of Gont, though poorer even than those.
From "A Wizard of Earthsea" by Ursula K. Le Guin
Many migrants come from some of the poorest, oppressive and most chaotic parts of the world.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
"The change supports the poorest households, who spend a higher percentage of their income on energy bills," it added.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Gov. Gavin Newsom called Imperial Valley “the Saudi Arabia of lithium” in 2022, and has touted the industry’s potential to bring jobs and community benefits to one of the poorest counties in the state.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
In 1978 China was one of the poorest countries in the world, with a per capita income a fraction of what it is today.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
We escape the worst of the sun by hanging out near the market vendors in the poorest part of Lake.
From "Legend" by Marie Lu
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
