poorhouse
noun
(formerly) an institution in which paupers were maintained at public expense.
poorhouses
-
pluralof poorhouse.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The first approach argues for “indoor relief,” placing individuals primarily in institutions like poorhouses, or today’s public shelters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
Older adults were generally considered a “burden on the local taxes,” and many were either sent to poorhouses or auctioned off as farm labor.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2025
I recently read Dorothea Dix’s 1843 report on her investigation into the care of mentally ill people in poorhouses and prisons in Massachusetts.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 23, 2022
Black parents searched on their own, scouring orphanages, prisons, poorhouses.
From New York Times ● Oct. 27, 2020
Keeley cures, jails, penitentiaries, poorhouses, brothels, cabarets, and insane asylums.
From Treading the Narrow Way by R. E. Barrett
