impoverish

American  

[im-pov-er-ish, -pov-rish] / ɪmˈpɒv ər ɪʃ, -ˈpɒv rɪʃ /

verb (used with object)

1. to reduce to poverty.

   a country impoverished by war.

   Antonyms:

   enrich

2. to make poor in quality, productiveness, etc.; exhaust the strength or richness of.

   Bad farming practices impoverished the soil.

   Synonyms:

   cripple, fatigue, enervate, weaken, drain, deplete

   Antonyms:

   enrich

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impoverish British  

/ ɪmˈpɒvərɪʃ /

verb

1. to make poor or diminish the quality of

   to impoverish society by cutting the grant to the arts

2. to deprive (soil, etc) of fertility

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Other Word Forms

• impoverisher noun
• impoverishment noun

Etymology

Origin of impoverish

1400–50; late Middle English empoverishen < Middle French empovriss- (long stem of empovrir ), equivalent to em- em- ¹ + povre poor + -iss -ish ²

Example Sentences

Michtom, who emigrated in 1888 from an impoverished shtetl in the Russian Pale of Settlement, noted that the czar “was never that humanitarian.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Rubble is all that remains of the building once home to Adnan Mardash's grocery shop in north Lebanon's Tripoli after it collapsed, killing 14 people and shining a spotlight on the impoverished city's neglect.

From Barron's

The image was of two emaciated, impoverished South Asian children.

From BBC

Today, the Sudanese transport company Tarco operates daily crossings, carrying around 200 passengers per trip from the modern port of Suakin, within sight of the ancient city and its impoverished environs.

From Barron's

She portrayed a spoiled socialite turned impoverished rural motel manager in “Schitt’s Creek.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bankrupt
• deplete
• exhaust
• ruin