Definition of POVERTY

poverty

Meanings

Plural: poverties

Noun

  • the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions
  • The quality or state of being poor; lack of money
  • A deficiency of something needed or desired

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English poverte, from Old French poverté (Modern French pauvreté), from Latin paupertās, from pauper (“poor”) + -tas (“noun of state suffix”). Cognates include pauper, poor.

Synonyms

armth, beggary, destitution, impecuniosity, impecuniousness, impoverishment, indigence, mendicancy, mendicity, misery, neediness, pauperism, penury, poorness, poverty, privation, reduced circumstances, slender means, straitened circumstances

Antonyms

wealth

Scrabble Score: 15

poverty is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
poverty is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
poverty is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 16

poverty is a valid Words With Friends word