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. )

Explanation

If you're homeless, you don't have any place to live — you might be without a roof over your head, or even without a country to call your own. Refugees living in temporary camps because of civil war are homeless. Homeless refugees aren't really citizens of any land, while other homeless people are in a more temporary bad spot, having lost their homes because of financial trouble, illness, or other bad luck. Sometimes the word homeless is used as a noun for a person in such a predicament, but it's more correct and thoughtful to use the word as an adjective — that way, a homeless person isn't solely defined by not having a home.

Example Sentences

A shortage of available housing stock means the council often resorts to renting hotel rooms or bed and breakfasts to house the homeless.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026

She said city officials have to do a better job of helping homeless people off the streets and preventing further deterioration of neighborhoods.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 27, 2026

Helping animals in wartime is also extremely risky, says Nate Mook, whose Hachiko Foundation provides veterinary treatment and pet food and has 150 feeding stations for homeless animals along the front line.

From BBC • Apr. 25, 2026

It was the sight of abandoned and homeless dogs that moved Lala Tarapakina to get involved in the pet evacuations.

From BBC • Apr. 25, 2026

Villagers were left homeless, without the animals they depended on for farming, income, and food.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge

Related Words

• houseless
• unhoused
• unsheltered