definitions

beggar

[ beg-er ]
/ ˈbɛg ər /
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR beggar ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who begs alms or lives by begging.
a penniless person.
a wretched fellow; rogue: the surly beggar who collects the rents.
a child or youngster (usually preceded by little): a sudden urge to hug the little beggar.

verb (used with object)

to reduce to utter poverty; impoverish: The family had been beggared by the war.
to cause one's resources of or ability for (description, comparison, etc.) to seem poor or inadequate: The costume beggars description.

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RELATED WORDS

vagabond, panhandler, bum, vagrant, supplicant, deadbeat, tramp, mendicant, hobo, borrower, asker, scrounger, rustler, down-and-out, bankrupt, dependent, suppliant, pauper, guttersnipe, indigent

Nearby words

begat, begats, begem, beget, begetter, beggar, beggar description, beggar's opera, the, beggar's-lice, beggar-my-neighbor, beggar-my-neighbour

Origin of beggar

First recorded in 1175–1225, beggar is from the Middle English word beggare, beggere. See beg1, -er1, -ar3

Related forms

beg·gar·hood, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for beggar

British Dictionary definitions for beggar

beggar

/ (ˈbɛɡə) /

noun

a person who begs, esp one who lives by begging
a person who has no money or resources; pauper
ironic, jocular, mainly British fellowlucky beggar!

verb (tr)

to be beyond the resources of (esp in the phrase to beggar description)
to impoverish; reduce to begging

Derived Forms

beggarhood or beggardom, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012