underprivileged
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of underprivileged
First recorded in 1920–25; under- + privileged
Explanation
Someone underprivileged doesn't have the advantages other people have. Underprivileged people usually live in poverty. A privilege is a right or an advantage, and people who are underprivileged lack such rights and advantages. Many times, this word is used as a synonym for poor. People often worry about underprivileged children who are living in poverty and may not have access to healthy food or good medical care. Underprivileged children often go to the worst schools too, which is another disadvantage.
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.
“I retained my interest in math education because this was the path from, let’s say, an underprivileged background to a very lucrative career,” Gerko told the Journal in 2023.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026
HHS has broad spending oversight for programs for the underprivileged, including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, early education of toddlers and foster care.
From Barron's • Dec. 31, 2025
Today, the organization also doubles as a nonprofit that teaches underprivileged communities to skate worldwide, including surf-skate retreats that empower women and girls.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 18, 2025
The money will go to Building Brighter Futures Center for the Arts, an organisation that supports Chicago's underprivileged youth.
From BBC • May 23, 2025
When Duncan was a boy, his after- school playmates were the underprivileged kids his mother cared for.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
