penury

[pen-yuh-ree]

noun

1. extreme poverty; destitution.

   Synonyms: want, need, indigence
   Antonyms: wealth

2. scarcity; dearth; inadequacy; insufficiency.

penury

/ ˈpɛnjʊrɪ /

noun

1. extreme poverty

2. extreme scarcity

Word History and Origins

Origin of penury¹

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin pēnūria; akin to Greek peîna hunger, penía poverty

Word History and Origins

Origin of penury¹

C15: from Latin pēnūria dearth, of obscure origin

Example Sentences

The AAU’s dictatorial control forced athletes into penury and enriched its leaders.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

He faced agony abroad, then penury in his adopted home.

Read more on Seattle Times

"Independence, I think, means penury for Wales, not success."

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If you're willing to force poor elderly people into even worse penury than they already are, you are their kind of gal.

Read more on Salon

If that’s true, what conceivable difference could it make whether a few of the dinosaur oil and gas companies want to merge and go into the abyss of bankruptcy and penury holding hands?

Read more on Washington Times