dispossessed

American  

[dis-puh-zest] / ˌdɪs pəˈzɛst /

adjective

1. evicted, as from a dwelling, land, etc.; ousted.

2. without property, status, etc., as wandering or displaced persons; rootless; disfranchised.

3. having suffered the loss of expectations, prospects, relationships, etc.; disinherited; disaffiliated; alienated.

   The modern city dweller may feel spiritually dispossessed.

---

Etymology

Origin of dispossessed

First recorded in 1590–1600; dispossess + -ed ²

Example Sentences

Goldblatt’s pictures from before these events are touristic and from afterward elegiac; particularly moving are his portraits of the dispossessed, showing their bitterness and their dignity.

From The Wall Street Journal

He believes that those at the heart of the protests were the "dispossessed".

From BBC

He has spent a decade organizing among the poor and dispossessed, including with the Kairos Center and the Poor People’s Campaign.

From Salon

But he was unique among the Democrats in speaking directly to the disaffected and dispossessed middle class.

From Los Angeles Times

He posted on X: "The Holy Father dedicated his life to serving the poor and dispossessed. "

From BBC

Related Words

• destitute
• disadvantaged
• needy
• underprivileged