homeless

American  

[hohm-lis] / ˈhoʊm lɪs /

adjective

1. without a home or without permanent housing.

   a homeless refugee.

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noun

(used with a plural verb)

1. Sometimes Disparaging and Offensive. Usually the homeless people who lack permanent housing or a fixed residence, collectively.

homeless British  

/ ˈhəʊmlɪs /

adjective

1. 1. having nowhere to live

   2. ( as collective noun; preceded by the )

      the homeless

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Sensitive Note

There are a number of words used to label people who don’t have permanent housing. While the term homeless was used without controversy for some time, advocates for this population, many style guides, and some people who identify as members of this group now prefer other terms including unhoused, houseless, and unsheltered. The alternative terms to homeless each have a specific nuance of meaning. Unsheltered, for example, includes people who sleep in cars and under overpasses, but not people in temporary housing like city shelters. Houseless and unhoused both mean that a person lacks permanent housing, but may still be a member of a community that they call home, in which case the designation homeless is imprecise. Further, someone’s homeless status is often temporary, as expressed in the phrases “people moving through houselessness,” “people experiencing homelessness,” and “unsheltered people.” Nevertheless, the term homeless is easily understood and even preferred as a term of self-identification by many members of this community. The designation homeless is still widely used and only sometimes offensive or disparaging. However, one should be mindful of the negative connotation this word may have and the many unfortunate associations it has had with poverty, mental illness, substance abuse, or crime. The word should not be used as a euphemism for these other statuses and stigmatized conditions. Homeless should be used only in the strict denotative meaning, and alternative expressions that put the person first, like “an individual experiencing homelessness,” are often preferable.

Other Word Forms

• homelessly adverb
• homelessness noun

Etymology

Origin of homeless

First recorded before 1000; home ( def. ) + -less ( def. )

Example Sentences

Two families have been left homeless after a large tree fell and crashed into their houses after Storm Dave brought heavy winds to the region.

From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026

Pope Francis had performed this ceremony, which re-enacts Jesus's gesture toward his apostles, among marginalised people, whether prisoners, migrants or the homeless.

From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026

The number of homeless students in Los Angeles County is surging, with thousands more unhoused in the span of a single school year.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

It’s a startling development that leaves its population homeless and reframes the entire series.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Some homeless guys go through trash bins on the street and sort through people's recycling from the curb to get bottles to turn in.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

Related Words

• houseless
• unhoused
• unsheltered