Poor

  

Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.

Poor

Definition: Poor

Poor

Adjective

1. Moderate to inferior in quality; "they improved the quality from mediocre to above average"; "he would make a poor spy".

2. Deserving or inciting pity; "a hapless victim"; "miserable victims of war"; "the shabby room struck her as extraordinarily pathetic"- Galsworthy; "piteous appeals for help"; "pitiable homeless children"; "a pitiful fate"; "couldn't rescue the poor fellow"; "his poor distorted limbs"; "a wretched life".

3. Having little money or few possessions; "deplored the gap between rich and poor countries"; "the proverbial poor artist living in a garret".

4. Characterized by or indicating lack of money; "the country had a poor economy".

5. Low in degree; "expectations were poor".

6. Badly supplied with desirable qualities or substances; "a poor land"; "the area was poor in timber and coal"; "food poor in nutritive value".

7. Not sufficient to meet a need; "an inadequate income"; "a poor salary"; "money is short"; "on short rations"; "food is in short supply"; "short on experience".

8. Unsatisfactory; "a poor light for reading"; "poor morale".

9. Yielding little by great labor; "a hardscrabble farm"; "poor soil".

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Date "poor" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references)

 

Specialty Definition: Poor

DomainDefinition

Bible

Poor The Mosaic legislation regarding the poor is specially important. (1.) They had the right of gleaning the fields (Lev. 19:9, 10; Deut. 24:19,21). (2.) In the sabbatical year they were to have their share of the produce of the fields and the vineyards (Ex. 23:11; Lev. 25:6). (3.) In the year of jubilee they recovered their property (Lev. 25:25-30). (4.) Usury was forbidden, and the pledged raiment was to be returned before the sun went down (Ex. 22:25-27; Deut. 24:10-13). The rich were to be generous to the poor (Deut. 15:7-11). (5.) In the sabbatical and jubilee years the bond-servant was to go free (Deut. 15:12-15; Lev. 25:39-42, 47-54). (6.) Certain portions from the tithes were assigned to the poor (Deut. 14:28, 29; 26:12, 13). (7.) They shared in the feasts (Deut. 16:11, 14; Neh. 8:10). (8.) Wages were to be paid at the close of each day (Lev. 19:13). In the New Testament (Luke 3:11; 14:13; Acts 6:1; Gal. 2:10; James 2:15, 16) we have similar injunctions given with reference to the poor. Begging was not common under the Old Testament, while it was so in the New Testament times (Luke 16:20, 21, etc.). But begging in the case of those who are able to work is forbidden, and all such are enjoined to "work with their own hands" as a Christian duty (1 Thess. 4:11; 2 Thess. 3:7-13; Eph. 4:28). This word is used figuratively in Matt. 5:3; Luke 6:20; 2 Cor. 8:9; Rev. 3:17. Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary.

Dream Interpretation

To dream that you, or any of your friends, appear to be poor, is significant of worry and losses. Source: Ten Thousand Dreams Interpreted ....

Literature

Poor Poor as Job. The allusion is to Job, who was by Satan deprived of everything he possessed.
Poor as Lazarus. This is the beggar Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at the rich man's gate, and desired to be fed from the crumbs that fell from Dive' table (Luke xvi. 13-31).
Poor as a church mouse. In a church there is no cupboard or pantry, where mice most do congregate.
There are none poor but those whom God hates. This does not mean that poverty is a punishment, but that the only poverty worthy of the name is poverty of God's grace. In this sense Dive may be the poor man, and Lazarus the beggar abounding in that "blessing of the Lord which maketh rich." Source: Brewer's Dictionary.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Specialty Definition: Absolute poverty

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Absolute poverty is a level of poverty at which certain minimum standards -- for example for nutrition, health and shelter -- cannot be met. The term "Absolute poverty" is perhaps slightly misleading, since there is no "absolute" standard that defines absolute poverty: the level of income necessary for these minimum standards is often referred to as the poverty line, which various institutions and individuals define differently.

Absolute poverty can be contrasted with relative poverty which is a poor standard of living relative to the rest of society.

External links

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Poverty

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

'Poverty' is a subjective and comparative term describing a lack of sufficient wealth (usually understood as capital, money, material goods, or resources especially natural resources) to live what is understood in a society as a "normal" life: for instance, to be capable of raising a healthy family, and especially educating children and participating in society. A person living in this condition of poverty is said to be poor. The meaning of "sufficient" varies widely across the different political and economic areas of the world.

Poverty is essentially the collective condition of poor people, or of poor groups, and in this sense entire nation-states are sometimes regarded as poor. To avoid stigma these are usually called developing nations.

Poverty is often strongly correlated with social problems, such as crime and disease (notably sexually transmitted diseases), sometimes in epidemic form. As a result, many societies employ social workers to fight poverty by a variety of methods which range from moral persuasion to financial subsidy to physical coercion.

There is evidence of poverty in every region. In developed countries, this condition results in wandering homeless people and poor suburbs (with so-called bidonvilles or favelas) in which poor people are - more or less - restricted to a ghetto.

The condition in itself is not always considered negatively, even if this is the prevalent interpretation: some cultural or religious groups consider poverty an ideal condition to live in, a condition necessary in order to reach certain spiritual or intellectual states. A notable example is that of the Christian Franciscan order. This is called voluntary simplicity, of which voluntary poverty is an extreme form.

Poverty is studied by many social, scientific and cultural disciplines.

In economics, two kinds of poverty are considered: relative and absolute.

In politics, the fight against poverty is usually regarded as a social goal and most governments have - secondarily at least - some dedicated institutions or departments. The work done by these bodies is mostly limited to census studies and identification of some income level below which a citizen is technically considered poor. Active interventions may include housing plans, social pensions, special job opportunities, or requirements.
Some ideologies (such as Marxism) argue that the economists and politicians actively work to create poverty. Other theories consider poverty a sign of a failing economic system and one of the main causes of crime.

In law, poverty is recognised, in most developed countries, as a mitigating factor for the determination of the punishment, being usually considered coincident with a generic and permanent state of need which can affect and alter the correct capability of clearly or freely identifying the legally and socially acceptable behaviour. Poverty is generally argued to cause increased crime rates amongst the poor by increasing their stress.

In education, poverty affects a student's ability to effectively profit from the learning environments. Especially for younger students coming from poverty, their primary needs as described in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs; the need for a safe and stable homes, clothes on their backs, and regular meals clouds a student's ability to learn. Furthermore, in education circles there is a term used to characterize the phenomenon of the rich getting richer and the poorer getting poorer (as it relates to education but easily transfers to poverty in general) is the Matthew Effect.

Related debates on a states' human capital and a person's individual capital tend likewise to focus on access to the instructional capital and social capital available only to those educated in such formal systems.

See also: poverty pimp, poverty level, Giffen good, pauper's oath

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Poverty."

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Synonyms: Poor

Synonyms: hapless (adj), hardscrabble (adj), inadequate (adj), mediocre (adj), miserable (adj), misfortunate (adj), pathetic (adj), piteous (adj), pitiable (adj), pitiful (adj), second-rate (adj), short (adj), wretched (adj). (additional references)
Antonym: rich (adj). (additional references)

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Synonyms within Context: Poor

ContextSynonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus).

Adversity

Adjective: unfortunate, unblest, unhappy, unlucky; improsperous, unprosperous; hoodooed; luckless, hapless; out of luck; in trouble, in a bad way, in an evil plight; under a cloud; clouded; ill off, badly off; in adverse circumstances; poor; behindhand, down in the world, decayed, undone; on the road to ruin, on its last legs, on the wane; in one's utmost need.

Feebleness

Adjective: feeble, bald, tame, meager, jejune, vapid, bland, trashy, lukewarm, cold, frigid, poor, dull, dry, languid; colorless, enervated; proposing, prosy, prosaic; unvaried, monotonous, weak, washy, wishy-washy; sketchy, slight.

Insufficiency

Meager, poor, thin, scrimp, sparing, spare, stinted; starved, starving; halfstarved, famine-stricken, famished; jejune.

Pain

Unhappy, infelicitous, poor, wretched, miserable, woe-begone; cheerless; (dejected); careworn.

Reasoning,

Weak, feeble, poor, flimsy, loose, vague.

Weakness

Languid, poor, infirm; faint, faintish; sickly; (disease); dull, slack, evanid, spent, short-winded, effete; weather-beaten; decayed, rotten, worn, seedy, languishing, wasted, washy, laid low, pulled down, the worse for wear.

Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus.

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Crosswords: Poor

English words defined with "poor": Guardians of the poorLittle Sisters of the PoorPoor law, poor man, Poor rate, poor rates, poor shapeThe poor. (references)
Specialty definitions using "poor": Enjoyed poor healthpoor fusion, Poor Jack, Poor Tassel. (references)
Etymologies containing "poor": Poraille. (references)

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Modern Usage: Poor

DomainUsage

Screenplays

You the poor kid that never got to go to Exeter or Andover (A Beautiful Mind; writing credit: Akiva Goldsman)

Video's a poor excuse (American Beauty; writing credit: Alan Ball)

Harold, the poor Duke is being treated appallingly (Moulin Rouge!; writing credit: Baz Luhrmann; Craig Pearce)

There is nothing wrong with poor people (Sweet Home Alabama; writing credit: C. Jay Cox)

I was raised a white child in a poor black family (The Jerk; writing credit: Carl Reiner, written by Steve Martin and Carl Gottlieb.)

Lyrics

Ya always wuz commited, a poor single mother on welfare, (Dear Mama; performing artist: 2Pac)

And my poor mother worked the mines (Stoney end; performing artist: Barbra Streisand)

It's more than my poor heart should endure (Brokenhearted; performing artist: Brandy)

Telling my poor heart (Neon Moon; performing artist: Brooks & Dunn)

Decide if you are rich or you're poor (Miss Me Blind; performing artist: Culture Club)

Clever

Whoever called it necking was a poor judge of anatomy. (references; author: Groucho Marx)

My parents were neither very poor nor conspicuously honest. (references; author: Mark Twain)

It is a poor workman who blames his tools. (references; author: unknown)

The woods are always empty if you're a poor hunter. (references; author: unknown)

You can't help the poor man by destroying the rich. (references; author: unknown)

Movie/TV Titles

Poor Cecily (1973)

Where Has Poor Mickey Gone? (1964)

Poor Lady Ping (1963)

The Poor Man's Happiness (1954)

Celia: The Sinister Affair of Poor Aunt Nora (1949)

Song Titles

Poor Side Of Town (performing artist: Johnny Rivers)

POOR LITTLE FOOL  (performing artist: Rick Nelson )

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Commercial Usage: Poor

DomainTitle

Books

  • Poor Leo's 2002 Computer Almanac (reference)

  • Poor Richards Almanack (reference)

  • Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money--That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! (reference)

  • Rich Media, Poor Democracy: Communication Politics in Dubious Times (reference)

  • The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are So Rich and Some So Poor (reference)

    (more book examples)

  

Theater & Movies

  

Music

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Image Slideshow: Poor

Photos:
Poor

More pictures...

Illustrations:
Poor

More pictures...

Computer Images:
Poor

More pictures...

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Photo Album: Poor

ThumbnailDescription & CreditThumbnailDescription & Credit

This is advanced malignant melanoma. At the left, one can see a plaque of early, radial growth phase superficial spreading melanoma. To the right, and contiguous with the plaque, is a pink (amelanotic) nodule of deeply invasive vertical growth phase melanoma. Melanomas diagnosed at this stage have a poor prognosis; many of these patients develop metastatic disease and die from their cancer. In the majority of instances, the plaque stage of melanoma is present for a sufficient period of time to permit its diagnosis and removal before it progresses to a more advanced (and more difficult to treat) stage. Credit: Unknown photographer/artist.

PATHFINDER wardroom 1959 Front Row: Carter, Keltner, Stavran, Harper, Kinney Center Row: Nygren, Clark, Captain Rubottom, CME Gilgan, Popper Back Row: Poor, McCall, Meiers, Taetz, Wiener, Newton, Ten Eyck, Degroot. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection.

A 400 kilogram (880 pounds) tuna is landed by eight fishermen. This is a difficult and dangerous time when synchronized effort is required to land the tuna. Poor timing can cause the poles to break and a fisherman to land in the water. Some fishermen have died in this manner after falling overboard and being struck by the tuna tails. Credit: Fisheries.

A mountain of oysters. Where spawning conditions are good, oysters in their natural state will attach themselves, one generation atop another, until great ridges of them exist up to high tide. However, such oysters are poor quality and of little commercial value. By spreading them out and giving them room to grow, the quality can be improved. F&W A-6151. Credit: Fisheries.

Cartoon depicting long periods at sea on the BLAKE and poor pay for supporting family. In: "Scrap Book Hydrographic Inspector's Office", 1881. Call Number QB 281.2 .S37 1881. Credit: Treasures of the Library.

Figure 2. Display model of Aime's second wave study instrument built in 1839 and tested in the anchorage at Algiers in 40 meters water depth for one month. This gave negative results even during periods of poor weather. The device weighed nearly 200 pounds. Credit: Sailing for Science - the NOAA Fleet Then and Now.

Poor landuse planning along the Upper Mississippi River bluffs. Located in Crawford County, WI, just outside of Prairie du Chein. Credit: Bob Nichols.

Thinning timber stands by removing poor trees in an important management technique. Credit: Lynn Betts.

Rock-handling Process (1908). Measured drawing delineated by Richard K. Anderson, Jr., 1978. (Reproduction Number: HAER, MI-2, sheet 18 of 34) Like many copper-mining operations on Michigan's Upper Peninsula, the Quincy Mining Company depended on complex processes such as the one illustrated in this HAER drawing to handle the copper and rock blasted from mines. At the company's No. 2 mine, the Shaft-Rockhouse separated the copper and rock mechanically into three distinct groups: "mass" copper (pure ore), poor rock containing little or no copper ore, and ore-rich rock and chunks larger than twenty inches. Once separated, the mass copper was shipped directly to smelters via the Great Lakes, the poor rock was crushed for use in road construction, and the material in the third group was crushed before shipment to smelters. Credit: Library of Congress.

Detail view of tops of upstream arch barrels. Photograph by Jack E. Boucher, Summer 1971. (Reproduction Number: HAER, UTAH,18-SALCI,22-5) The development of the multiple-arch reinforced concrete dam by engineer John S. Eastwood took advantage of the inherent characteristics of an ancient building form to greatly reduce the needed mass of dams. Inclined, reinforced concrete barrel vaults transfer the weight of the impounded water to the ground through a series of buttresses. The downward pressure actually increases the stability of the dam by pressing it against its foundation, making it an ideal design for poor foundation conditions. Eastwood built similar dams throughout the world. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

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Digital Photo Gallery: Poor
 

"Poor neighborhood 3" by Gilbert Tremblay
Commentary: "Some building I took a pict of in old quebec. ."
"The chair never wins" by Matt 'Fox' Laskowski
Commentary: "That poor chair..."

Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers.

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Familiar Quotations: Poor

AuthorQuotation

Author Unknown

Live poor so you can die rich.

Charles Ii

Let not poor Nelly Starve.

Jesus

The poor you always have with you.

John Ray

Children are poor men's riches.

Josh Billings

Remember the poor, it costs nothing.

M. Wren

Ability is a poor man's wealth.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Poverty consist in feeling poor.

Thomas Fuller

Poor men's reasons are not heard.

William Shakespeare

How apt the poor are to be proud.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Historic Usage: Poor

AuthorDateQuotation

John Locke

1690

This is a poor man’s freedom; the more he is beaten, the more he implores, and he prostrates himself as he goes down in the struggle, so that he may come back a little with his teeth. (Second Treatise of Government)

Marbury v. Madison

1803

It is in these words: "I do solemnly swear that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich; and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge all the duties incumbent on me as _____, according to the best of my abilities and understanding, agreeably to the constitution, and laws of the United States." (reference)

Communist Manifesto

1848

This German Socialism, which took its schoolboy task so seriously and solemnly, and extolled its poor stock-in-trade in such mountebank fashion, meanwhile gradually lost its pedantic innocence. (reference)

Abraham Lincoln

1863

The brave men, living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. (The Gettysburg Address)

John F. Kennedy

1961

If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. (reference)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Use in Literature: Poor

TitleAuthorQuote

Emma

Austen, Jane

And now, poor girl

Tangled Tale

Carroll, Lewis

But the poor fishermen had not so easily forgotten their property

A Christmas Carol

Dickens, Charles

It was made when we were both poor and content to be so, until, in good season, we could improve our worldly fortune by our patient industry

Scarlet Letter

Hawthorne, Nathaniel

I had ceased to be a writer of tolerably poor tales and essays, and had become a tolerably good Surveyor of the Customs

Les Miserables

Hugo, Victor

Dust, that end of all joys, was made to chastise these poor little rosebuds, when guilty of prattling

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Joyce, James

Come to Him, poor sinner, poor vain and erring sinner

King Richard III

Shakespeare, William

Lo, in these windows that let forth thy life I pour the helpless balm of my poor eyes

Grapes of Wrath

Steinbeck, John

Joad could see it ahead of him, its poor branches curving over the way, its load of leaves tattered and scraggly as a molting chicken

Gulliver's Travels

Swift, Jonathan

But this good prince was so gracious as to forgive the poor page his whipping, upon promise that he would do so no more, without special orders

Walden

Thoreau, Henry David

I refer to the degraded poor, not now to the degraded rich

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Non-Fiction Usage: Poor

SubjectTopicQuote

Health

The child has poor eye contact. (references)

Poor vision or blindness may result. (references)

Medicaid Illness strikes both rich and poor families. (references)

Business

Reasons for poor enforcement are numerous. (references)

Poor or mediocre service often leads to lower sales. (references)

They sometimes suffer from poor marketing and after-sales service. (references)

Children

India

Patients generally are ill-fed, denied adequate medical attention, and kept in poorly-ventilated halls with poor sanitary conditions. (references)

Bulgaria

Problems of general unemployment and a poor economy also undermined initiatives aimed at advancing equal opportunity for persons with disabilities; the great majority of persons with disabilities are unemployed. (references)

China

One study found the differential mortality rates to be highest in areas where women have a lower social status, where economic and medical conditions are poor, and where family planning regulations are strictly enforced (although the correlation for this factor was weak). (references)

Civil Liberties

Angola

There also are five commercial radio stations including the Catholic Radio Ecclesia, and Radio Lac Luanda, which openly criticized aspects of government policies and highlighted poor socioeconomic conditions. (references)

Greece

Church officials expressed concern that antiproselytizing laws remain on the books, although such laws no longer hinder their ministering to the poor and to children. (references)

Georgia

Soviet passports bearing "propiskas" (proof of legal residence in a particular locality) were accepted as proof of identity because passports and identity cards are expensive to purchase and difficult to obtain, especially in poor and remote areas. (references)

Economic History

Panama

Plans for an academic and research community (City of Knowledge) have been plagued by poor marketing and follow-through at the agency responsible for their promotion. (references)

Senegal

Senegal has qualified for interim debt relief under the International Monetary Fund and World Bank-led initiative for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC), a program supported by the U.S. Government. (references)

Portugal

In the twenty-five years since the Portuguese Revolution, Portugal has completed a remarkable transformation from the poor man of Europe to one its faster growing economies. (references)

Human Rights

China

That same year, the Supreme People's Court announced provisions to enable the poor to afford litigation, and announced that officials postponed, reduced or waived court fees in over 237,000 cases involving the poor, elderly or persons with disabilities. (references)

Colombia

On September 23, the official's brother escaped and reported that the development official was in poor health due to long forced marches and lack of medical attention for a heart condition. (references)

China

Prisoners and detainees often are kept in overcrowded conditions with poor sanitation, and their food often is inadequate and of poor quality. (references)

Indigenous People

El Salvador

As with the poor rural sector in general, access to land is a growing problem confronting indigenous people. (references)

Bolivia

Lack of education, inefficient farming and mining methods, indigenous cultural practices, and societal biases keep the indigenous people poor. (references)

Peru

Poor transportation and communications infrastructure in the highlands and in the Amazon jungle region makes political mobilization and organization difficult. (references)

Minorities

Dominican Republic

Sometimes poor Haitian families arrange for Dominican families to "adopt" and employ their children. (references)

Brazil

In Sao Paulo human rights activists continued to express concern about discrimination against blacks and poor persons from the Northeast by neo-Nazi groups in the South. (references)

South Africa

The employers cited a lack of training and development, poor recruitment processes, and an antagonistic corporate culture as the main impediments to affirmative action. (references)

Political Economy

BELGIUM

Belgian public procurement still manifests instances of poor public notification and procedural enforcement, requirements for offsets in military procurement and nontransparency in all stages of the procurement process. (references)

Kuwait

The Labor Law does not protect domestic workers, whose situation remains poor. (references)

BOLIVIA

In 1998 and 2001, Bolivia entered into the Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) I and II programs respectively. (references)

Political Rights

Congo

The central government executive in Kinshasa generally appointed governors, but once in the provinces they had considerable autonomy, due in part to poor communications and transportation infrastructure. (references)

Lesotho

Despite opposition coalition claims, the Langa Commission, composed of international observers from four southern African countries, reported no definitive findings of vote rigging or fraud; however, post-election management of electoral and polling station data was poor. (references)

Indonesia

The numerous technical problems, due to inadequate preparations and ambiguities in the regulations, included inadequate supplies of ballots and reporting forms, poor training of poll workers, confusion over procedures, and insufficient funds to pay poll workers. (references)

Trade

Thailand

Since the onset of the financial crisis in 1997, the World Bank's assistance to Thailand has focused on three major objectives to restore sustainable and more equitable growth: 1) renewing competitiveness of Thailand's private sector and labor force; 2) improving governance through enhanced private and public sector management, and 3) sharing growth and ensuring quality of life by protecting the vulnerable and targeting the poor and improving environmental management . The Bank supports Government efforts in these areas through a combination of lending, guarantees, technical assistance, and policy advice . Other forms of Bank support include analytical reports, policy notes, a program of international knowledge exchange, and public policy seminars. (references)

Poland

Until very recently commercial bank financing for U.S. exports to Poland was limited due to Poland's poor credit rating. (references)

New Zealand

Some New Zealand exporters have taken products in trade when partnering with cash poor countries such as the former Soviet bloc countries. (references)

Travel

Costa Rica

Signage is poor and sometimes confusing. (references)

Bolivia

Except for a crucial 30-Km stretch, the "new" road between Cochabamba and Santa Cruz is also paved, a new paved road from Santa Cruz to Trinidad (580 kms), will be inaugurated in August 2001. Other roads, including all overland links to Argentina and Brazil, are often impassable or extremely slow from time to time due to regularly occurring rain coupled with poor maintenance. (references)

Latvia

However, quick response is poor in rural areas. (references)

Women

South Africa

There is an extremely high incidence of rape for reasons including a poor general security climate and societal attitudes condoning sexual violence against women. (references)

Qatar

This NGO is run entirely by women, and focuses on the health and education of, and provision of assistance to, women and children, particularly the poor. (references)

Botswana

The Metlhaetsile Women's Information Centre, which provided legal assistance to poor women, dissolved during the year; however, it was trying to reorganize under a different name at year's end. (references)

Worker Rights

Philippines

Most child labor is in the informal sector, most often in family settings, and the Government rarely if ever seeks to prosecute a poor family because they have a working child. (references)

Burma

Surplus labor conditions, a poor economy, and lack of protection by the Government continue to dictate substandard conditions for workers. (references)

Portugal

Poor environmental controls in textile production also cause considerable concern. (references)

Lexicography

Devil's Dictionary

RESPITE, n. A suspension of hostilities against a sentenced assassin, to enable the Executive to determine whether the murder may not have been done by the prosecuting attorney. Any break in the continuity of a disagreeable expectation. Altgeld upon his incandescend bed Lay, an attendant demon at his head. "O cruel cook, pray grant me some relief -- Some respite from the roast, however brief." "Remember how on earth I pardoned all Your friends in Illinois when held in thrall." "Unhappy soul! for that alone you squirm O'er fire unquenched, a never-dying worm. "Yet, for I pity your uneasy state, Your doom I'll mollify and pains abate. "Naught, for a season, shall your comfort mar, Not even the memory of who you are." Throughout eternal space dread silence fell; Heaven trembled as Compassion entered Hell. "As long, sweet demon, let my respite be As, governing down here, I'd respite thee." "As long, poor soul, as any of the pack You thrust from jail consumed in getting back." A genial chill affected Altgeld's hide While they were turning him on t'other side. Joel Spate Woop

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

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Spoken Usage: Poor

SpeakerPhrase(s)

Barbara Eden

I don't know that I had a rough childhood. My parents were children of the Depression. I had a poor childhood. We didn't have a lot of money. But I had a wonderful childhood. I had a family that was very warm and loving.

Dennis Miller

For every guy from a poor neighborhood who grows up into a criminal, there are a thousand who work hard and build a decent life for themselves.

Rush Limbaugh

This gap between the rich and the poor is a myth.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Speeches: Poor

SpeakerTermPhrase(s)

Andrew Jackson

1829-1837Justice and benevolence unite in favor of releasing the poor of our cities from burdens which are not necessary to the support of our Government and tend only to increase the wants of the destitute.

Abraham Lincoln

1861-1865The brave men, living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract.

John F. Kennedy

1961-1963This country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor.

Lyndon B. Johnson

1963-1969There are poor to be lifted up, and there are cities to be built, and there is a world to be helped.

Richard Nixon

1969-1974With those who are willing to join, let us cooperate to reduce the burden of arms, to strengthen the structure of peace, to lift up the poor and the hungry.

Gerald Ford

1974-1977President Eisenhower was raised in a poor but religious home in the heart of America.

Jimmy Carter

1977-1981Africa is a continent of poor nations for the most part.

Ronald Reagan

1981-1989You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.

Bill Clinton

1993-2001Early in this century, being old meant being poor.

George W. Bush

2001-2005Only by acknowledging poor performance can we ever help schools to achieve.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Usage Frequency: Poor

"Poor" is generally used as an adjective (general or positive) -- approximately 99.99% of the time. "Poor" is used about 15,109 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted)
Parts of SpeechPercentUsage per
100 Million Words
Rank in English
Adjective (general or positive)99.99%15,108614
                    Total100.00%15,109N/A

Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.

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Name Usage Frequency: Poor

The following table summarizes the usage of "poor" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified.
NameUsage/GenderUsage per 100
million Persons
Rank in USA
PoorLast name1,0008,797
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.

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Derived & Related Names: Poor

The following table summarizes names derived from the word "poor".
 
NameGenderLanguageMeaning
DalaiahN/ABiblical

The poor of the Lord

DelaiahN/ABiblical

The poor of the Lord

DelilahN/ABiblical

Poor

DileanN/ABiblical

That is poor

JaanaiN/ABiblical

Making poor

JannaN/ABiblical

Poor

LamechN/ABiblical

Poor

MachiN/ABiblical

Poor

MicahN/ABiblical

Poor

UnniN/ABiblical

Poor

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

 

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Expressions: Poor

Expressions using "poor": a poor consolation a poor devil a poor fellow a poor hand on the violin a poor trencherman be a poor eater be a poor sailor be a poor whip be as poor as a church mouse be in poor health be in poor spirits be poor became poor become poor casual poor cut a poor figure dog poor grow poor guardian of the poor Guardians of the poor have a poor ear for music have a poor hand have poor eyesight have poor judgement hospice for the poor however poor he may be in my poor opinion in poor health in poor physical shape in poor spirits in poor taste Little Sisters of the Poor make poor miserably poor of poor physique of poor quality poor as a church mouse poor attendance poor beggar poor beggar! poor behavior poor behaviour poor box poor boy poor chance poor chap! poor child! poor children poor Clares poor compliment poor copy poor country poor cousin poor creature poor crop poor cropper poor devil poor devil! poor excuse poor fellow poor fellow! poor figure poor fish poor fusion poor harvest poor health poor hearing poor heart poor house poor imitator poor in poor in spirit poor law poor laws poor lime poor little thing! poor little wretch! poor looking poor man poor management poor manners poor man's Einstein poor man's goods poor man's orchid poor man's pulse poor man's treacle poor man's weatherglass poor me! poor men poor mouth poor people poor performance poor person poor poll poor polling poor progress poor quality poor quarter poor ranking poor rate poor rates. Additional references.

Hyphenated Usage

Beginning with "poor": poor-box, poor-country, poor-from, poor-house, Poor-john, Poor-law, poor-little-baby, poor-looking, poor-man, poor-miss-taylor-that-was, poor-mouth, poor-mouthed, poor-moving, poor-net, poor-poo-ray-a, poor-quality, poor-rate, poor-relief, poor-selling, poor-sighted, Poor-spirited, Poor-spiritedness, poor-the, poor-thing-he, poor-thing-how-you-must-be-suffering-thank-god-i'm-not, poor-tithe, Poor-will, Poor-willie, poor-world.

Ending with "poor": base-poor, dirt-poor, non-poor, nutrient-poor, piss-poor, rich-poor, species-poor.

Containing "poor": let's-stay-poor-together, piss-poor-job, rich-little-poor-girl, we-are-poor-therefore, whip-poor-will.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Frequency of Internet Keywords: Poor

The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com.
 
ExpressionFrequency
per Day
ExpressionFrequency
per Day

rich dad poor dad

518

little poor sister

44

standard and poor

349

poor credit car loan

44

poor

226

davids poor pub

40

poor credit loan

210

poor blood circulation

38

poor circulation

188

whip poor will

37

poor credit personal loan

145

poor white trash

36

angry poor young

144

working poor

33

poor prince

135

standard and poor rating

33

poor credit credit card

105

food for the poor

32

mortgage with poor credit

97

poor kid

31

devil die eat evil god greater have if it it it ll more need poor rich than than

89

people picture poor

31

poor man james bond

83

poor clares

30

poor richards almanac

82

poor man lobster

30

rich man poor man

77

loan for people with poor credit

29

poor people

76

mortgage loan for poor credit

27

auto loan poor credit

75

poor righteous teacher

26

poor credit

72

billys poor

25

poor family

57

poor circulation symptom

24

poor credit home loan

48

boy poor

23

poor child

47

beach bikini man poor

23
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Modern Translation: Poor

Language Translations for "poor"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.

Afrikaans

  

sleg (bad, badly, miserable, nasty), kwaai (bad, miserable, nasty), arm (arm, miserable), beroerd (abject, bad, dismal, meager, miserable, nasty, wretched), beklagenswaardig (dismal, miserable, pitiful), beklaenswaardig (dismal, miserable, pitiful), beklaaglik (dismal, miserable, pitiful). (various references)

   

Albanian

  

nevojtar (necessitous, needy), keq (awry, bad, badly, downhill, foul, miserable, nasty, poorly), i vobektë, i varfanjak, i varfër (bad, beggarly, destitute, fortuneless, impecunious, indigent, lame, lazarus, low-lived, meager, meagre, mean, miserable, one horse, penurious, spare, squalid, wretched), i shkretë (blessed, desert, deserted, desolate, devoid of inhabitants, inhospitable, lifeless, lonely, lonesome, waste, wild), i pakët (exiguous, few, lean, limited, little, low, marginal, meager, meagre, measly, modest, narrow, picayune, scant, scanty, scarce, scrimpy, skimpy, slender, small, spare, sparing, thin, wee), i ngratë (unfortunate), i keq (bad, bad tempered, baleful, blinking, bodeful, cancerous, catty, cheesy, crook, dark, defective, dubious, evil, heavy, ill, ill disposed, ill natured, ill-conditioned, lousy, low-grade, malign, malignant, nasty, naughty, perverse, punk, shady, shoddy, sinister, ugly, vicious, vile, wicked), i gjorë (piteous, unfortunate, unlucky), i dobët (anaemic, anemic, bad, cachectic, characterless, cheesy, delicate, Dickey, dicky, dim, Dotty, enervate, faint, fainting, feeble, flabby, flaccid, gone, ill-conditioned, impaired, indolent, inferior, infirm, insubstantial, knock kneed, lame, lamentable, languid, languorous, lax, lean, low, meager, meagre, mean, measly, milk and water, nerveless, pale, pimping, pithless, poky, puny, queasy, reckling, remiss, remote, rotten, rundown, scraggy, scrannel, scrawny, scrofulous, seared, shoddy, skinny, slack, sleazy, slender, slight, slim, soft, spare, squeamish, tender, thin, third rate, Twiggy, weak, weakly, woozy), fukara (poor man). (various references)

   

Arabic 

  

‏حقير (abject, base, beggarly, blackguardly, cheap, despicable, dingy, dirty, frowzy, grubby, ignoble, inferior, insignificant, lousy, low, low down, lowly, mean, menial, niggling, paltry, pettifogger, petty, pip squeak, pitiable, pitiful, popinjay, rotten, scabby, scaly, scoundrelly, scruffy, scummy, scurvy, servile, shabby, shoddy, slavish, slim, slushy, small minded, snide, sod, squalid, swine, tacky, trifling, ungracious, unworthy, varmint, vile, villainous, worthless, wretched), ‏ردئ (bad, base, bastard, bum, coarse, common, doggie, evil, fearful, fiendish, foul, ill, inferior, nice, paltry, poorness, putrid, second rate, slim, sour, tacky, tinpot, unhealthy, vicious, villainous, watery), ‏الفقير (pauper), ‏ضعيف المستوى, ‏عادي (average, banal, classless, common, commonplace, conventional, household, lay, mean, medial, mediocre, middling, mundane, natural, normal, ordinary, plain, plebeian, prosaic, run of the mill, second rate, simple, some, stock, trivial, unexceptional, wont), ‏عاجز (decrepit, disabled, effete, feckless, helpless, incapable, incompetent, ineffective, inert, infirm, invalid, paralysed, paralyzed, powerless, unable), ‏زهيد (cheap, paltry, piddling, scanty, scrimpy, small, trivial), ‏بائس (afflicted, cheerless, deplorable, desolate, devil, disconsolate, distressed, forlorn, godforsaken, hapless, heel, helpless, lamentable, measly, miserable, paltry, pathetic, penurious, piteous, pitiful, poverty stricken, ratty, sad, scruffy, seedy, sickly, sordid, squalid, unfortunate, unhappy, woeful, wretched), ‏غير كافئ (incommensurate, short), فقير (poor man), ‏نحيل (bony, gaunt, lean, meager, meagre, raw boned, skinny, slender, slight, slim, small, svelte, thin), ‏معاني, ‏معوز (destitute, down and out, indigent, infelicitous, insolvent, lack, necessitous, needy, pauper, poverty stricken, starveling), ‏مسكين (poor fellow), ‏محتاج (in need, indigent, necessitous, needy, pauper), ‏فقير (destitute, fakir, indigent, low-income, moneyless, necessitous, needy, ownerless, pauper, penurious, poor mouth, poverty stricken), ‏في حالة متدهورة, ‏سقيم (below par, ill, puny, rickety, sick, sickly, unwell, wan). (various references)

   

Basque

  

gizaixo. (various references)

   

Bulgarian 

  

слаб (defective, dim, effeminate, faint, feeble, flabby, flaccid, flat, flimsy, impotent, irretentive, lame, lean, light, limp, liny, low, meager, meagre, mean, mild, nerveless, off, pale, puny, queasy, rickety, scanty, scrannel, sick, sinewless, slack, sleazy, slender, slight, slim, slow, sluggish, small, soft, spare, spineless, tender, tenuous, thin, thready, unable, washy, watery, weak, weakish, weakly), клет (miserable, pitiable, woeful), горък, нуждаещ се (necessitous), нещастен (abject, hapless, ill fated, ill-starred, inauspicious, lack-all, lorn, sick, unblessed, unchancy, unfortunate, unhappy, unlucky, woeful, wretched), незначителен (cheap, dinky, fiddling, fractional, frivolous, immaterial, imperceptible, inappreciable, inconsiderable, inessential, inglorious, insignificant, least, little, mean, minor, minute, negligible, niggling, nominal, noteless, nugatory, obscure, one horse, outside, paltry, peddling, pettifogging, petty, picayune, piddling, piffling, pimping, pokey, poky, potty, puerile, pygmy, rabbity, scrubby, slight, small, small time, subfusc, tenuous, third class, tiddly, trifling, trivial, two-by-four, twopenny-halfpenny, unconsidered, unimportant), недостоен (discreditable, undeserving, unworthy), недоброкачествен (poor quality), жалък (abject, lamentable, mangy, miserable, piteous, pitiable, pitiful, pokey, sad, scabbed, scabby, scaly, scrubby, sorrowful, sorry, squalid, woeful), лош (bad, chronic, cobbler, evil, fie-fie, foul, ill natured, ill tempered, ill-conditioned, inferior, loose, lousy, malefic, maleficent, malign, mean, miscreant, miserable, nasty, naughty, rough, rugged, severe, shoddy, sinister, sorry, thumping, ugly, vicious, wicked, wrong), беден (fortuneless, humble, hungry, impecunious, indigent, jejune, meager, meagre, mean, moneyless, necessitous, needful, needy, penniless, penurious, pokey, poky, poorly off, poverty stricken, scanty, shabby, tenuous, thin), дребен (dinky, dwarf, finical, finicking, finicky, insignificant, little, minor, niggling, paltry, peddling, petty, picayune, piddling, pimping, pokey, poky, potty, puerile, puny, pygmy, rabbity, sawed-off, shabby, short, small, small time, small-scale, trifling, trivial, undersized, unimportant, venial). (various references)

   

Catalan

  

pobre (miserable). (various references)

   

Chinese 

  

貧苦 (poverty-stricken), 貧窮 (impoverished), , (rustic), (exhausted), , (defeated, my, ruined, shabby, worn out), 差勁 , (a messenger, a mission, difference, different, discrepancy, error, send, short of, to commission, to differ, to err, to lack, to make a mistake, uneven), (cold, to tremble), (rustic). (various references)

   

Czech

  

ubohý (crappy, deplorable, dingy, dismal, down in the mouth, grotty, miserable, paltry, pitiable, sleazy, wretched), chudý (disadvantaged, impecunious, lean, needy, scanty, thin, underprivileged). (various references)

   

Danish

  

fattig (miserable), slet (bad, miserable, nasty), ond (bad, miserable, nasty), dårlig (bad, miserable, nasty). (various references)

   

Dutch

  

beklagenswaardig (dismal, miserable, pitiful), arm (arm, crank, miserable). (various references)

   

Esperanto

  

povra, malriĉa (miserable), malbona (bad, miserable, nasty), kompatinda (dismal, miserable, pitiful). (various references)

   

Faeroese

  

ringur (bad, miserable, nasty, ring), neyðarsligur, neyðars (abject, dismal, meager, miserable, wretched), fátækur (gaunt, lean, meager, miserable, skimpy, skinny, thin). (various references)

   

Farsi 

  

فقیر (Penurious), پست (Abacinate, Abject, Cheap, Common, Currish, Despicable, Earthborn, Humble, Infamous, Inferior, Lily, Little, Mail, Menial, Peevish, Runty, Ungenerous, Venal, Vile, Villain, Villainous, Vulgar, Wretch, Wretched), مسکین , مستمند, معدود (Little, Paucity, Scant), نامرغوب (Inferior, Raunchy), ناچیز (Inconsequential, Inconsiderable, Little, Meager, Negligible, Nugatory, Pelting, Peppercorn, Piddling, Runty, Scrimp, Straw, Teeny, Trifle, Trivial, Vain), دون (Low, Lowly, Ribald, Servile, Shabby, Small, Sordid), بینوا (Destitute, Unblessed, Unblest), بی پول (Broke, Impecunious). (various references)

   

Finnish

  

köyhä (indigent, needy). (various references)

   

French

  

pauvre (poor fellow), maigre, mauvais, faible. (various references)

   

Frisian

  

heukerich (abject, dismal, meager, miserable, wretched), earmoedich (miserable), earm (arm, miserable). (various references)

   

German

  

arm (arm, beam, beggarly, bracket, branch, indigent, indigently, lacking, miserable, penurious, penuriously, poorly, ray of starfish, sparse), schlecht (Amiss, bad, bad (worse, badly, chronic, corrupt, decayed, evil, faulty, foul, hard, ill, inferior, lamentable, lamentably, low, maladjusted, miserable, nasty, off, poorly, sick, stale, terribly, uneasy, unhealthy, unkind, unpalatable, unsatisfactory, unsavory, unsavoury, unsuitably, wicked, wrong), mangelhaft (defective, defectively, deficient, faultily, faulty, imperfect, inadequate, insufficient, unsatisfactory), mager (emaciated, fatless, gaunt, hungry, infertile, lank, lean, leanly, low fat, meager, meagre, rawboned, scant, scanty, skimpy, skinny, slender, thin, weak), dürftig (feeble, impoverished, insubstantial, lame, meager, meagre, miserable, necessitous, paltry, pathetic, penurious, penuriously, pitiable, poorly, scant, scanty, sketchy, skimpily, skimpy, slender, spare, sparse, sparsely, tenuous, thinly, unsubstantial, wretched), armselig (mean, miserable, necessitous, paltrily, paltry, pathetic, penurious, penuriously, piteous, pitiful, scrubby, squalid, squalidly, wretched). (various references)

   

Greek 

  

κακομοίρησ (miserable), καημένος, πενιχρός (meager, meagre, wretched), πτωχόσ (destitute, indigent), φτωχόσ (unprivileged), φτωχός (flimsy, impoverished), ταλαίπωροσ (miserable). (various references)

   

Guarani

  

anga (poor of [mine]). (various references)

   

Hawaiian

  

keq (bad, badly, miserable, nasty). (various references)

   

Hebrew 

  

מך (humble), מעוט (limited, meagre, minimum, minority, paucity, scanty), מסכן (hapless, miserable, pitiful, poor thing, unfortunate, wretched), ירוד (inferior, low, reduced), קלוקל (corrupt, defective, inferior, rotten, spoilt), עלוב (abject, god forsaken, humbled, mean, measly, miserable, pitiful, seamy, worthless, wretched), עני (impecunious, indigent, miserable, pauper, penurious, poor person, wretched), אומלל (disconsolate, feeble, hapless, miserable, unfortunate, unhappy, wretched), דך (crushed, lowly, oppressed, wretched), דל (humble, light, meagre, miserable, penurious, scanty, spare), רש. (various references)

   

Hungarian

  

szegény (beggar, hungry, impecunious, indigent, lowly born, miserable, needy, pauper, penniless, poor person, skint, to be skint). (various references)

   

Icelandic

  

vondur (bad, miserable, nasty), slæmur (bad, miserable, nasty), illur (bad, miserable, nasty), fátækur (miserable). (various references)

   

Indonesian

  

papa (daddy, destitute, father), miskin (beggarly, destitute, indigent, needy), malang (baleful, down, hapless, unlucky), kaum miskin, fakir (destitute, indigent). (various references)

   

Irish

  

olc (bad, miserable, nasty), dona (bad, miserable, nasty, unlucky; bad), daibhir, bocht. (various references)

   

Italian

  

povero (abject, arm, bare, beggarly, dismal, indigent, meager, meagre, miserable, needy, poor man, unfortunate, wretched), cattivo (airy-fairy, bad, evil, foul, frolic, frolicsome, ill, ill natured, mad, malicious, miserable, nasty, naughty, perverse, petulant, spiteful, unkind, vicious, wicked), magro (gaunt, lame, lean, low fat, meager, meagre, narrow, scant, scraggy, scrawny, skimmed, skimpy, skinny, slight, slim, thin, thinly). (various references)

   

Japanese Kanji 

  

貧しい. (various references)

   

Japanese Katakana 

  

プア , びんぼう (destitute, poverty), ひんじゃく (insubstantial, meagre), まずしい (needy), ほそぼそ (very narrow), にがて (dislike, weak), せつあく (bad situation, low quality), かすか (dim, faint, hazy, indistinct, weak, wretched), かれん (cute, lovely, oppression, pitiful, sweet), かわいそう (pathetic, pitiable), かんばしくない (disgraceful, unfavourable), へた (awkward, calyx, stem, unskillful), とぼしい (destitute, hard up, limited, meagre, scanty, scarce), ともしい (destitute, hard up, limited, meagre, scanty, scarce). (various references)

   

Korean 

  

가난한. (various references)

   

Lombard

  

poverett (miserable), gram (bad, miserable, nasty). (various references)

   

Manx

  

moalley, moal (backward, belated, decrepit, deliberate, deplorable, dim, disappointing, dull, enfeebled, feeble, flimsy, gradual, ill, laggard, late, late of fruit, listless, meagre, overdue, pithless, poorly, scraggy, slack, slow, sorry, tardy, tawdry, unimpressive, weak, weak as faith, wretched, wretched of thing), boght (deprived, grotty, miserable, pauper, shabby, shoddy, skinny). (various references)

   

Norwegian

  

stakkars, fattig (miserable), dårlig (bad, miserable, nasty). (various references)

   

Occitan

  

paure. (various references)

   

Papiamen

  

pober (beggar, miserable), malu (bad, badly, ill, miserable, nasty, sick, unwell), malo (bad, ill, miserable, nasty, sick, unwell). (various references)

   

Pig Latin

  

oorpay.(various references)

   

Polish

  

zły (bad, miserable, nasty), biedny (miserable). (various references)

   

Portuguese

  

pobre (almsman, beggar, beggarly, close-fisted, destitute, eleemosynary, hard set, hungry, indigent, jejune, lazarus, lean, mean, mendicant, miserable, necessitous, needy, pauper, penniless, penurious, shabby), mau (bad, bum, dark, evil, graceless, ill, ill-conditioned, ill-favored, ill-favoured, malignant, mischievous, miserable, nasty, perverse, punk, sinful, two-bit, unjust, unrighteous, venomous, vicious, vile, villainous, wrong), ruim (bad, mean, miserable, nasty, perverse, rotten, ugly). (various references)

   

Romanian

  

prost (ass, bad, badly, beef-witted, blinkard, blockhead, blunt, booby, calf, cheap, clumsy, cock eyed, common, dead, dolt, doltish, donkey, dull, dullard, dumb, dunce, dunderhead, flat, fool, foolish, good for nothing, goof, goon, goose, Goosey, gull, harmful, idiot, idiotish, inhospitable, lousy, lubber-head, miserable, nincompoop, ninny, nitwit, nitwitted, noddy, noodle, numskull, numskulled, oaf, oafish, pin head, poorly, silly, simple, simpleton, snipe, soft, soft-headed, sorry, spoony, stupid, thoughtless, unfavorable, unfavourable, wretched, zombie), calicesc (beggarly, miserable, wretched), deficitar (scanty), insuficient (defective, deficient, exiguous, inadequate, inadequately, inappropriate, insufficient, insufficiently, meager, meagre, scant, scanty, scarce, unsatisfactorily), mic (Chitty, chopping, contemptible, dwarfish, exiguous, little, low, mincing, minor, narrow, petty, pimping, poky, pony, puny, scrubby, shallow, shoe string, short, slender, slight, small, undersized, weak, wee, young), nehrãnitor (innutritious), biet (miserable, piteous, unfortunate, unlucky), råu (bad, miserable, nasty), vrednic de dispreţ (contemptible, despicable, pitiable, reprehensible), sãrãcãcios (baldly, barely, barren, humble, mean, meanly, miserable, modest, penurious, poky, poorly, poverty stricken, scant, shabby, slender, sorry, sparing), sãrac (barren, beggarly, destitute, empty, hard up, impecunious, in straitened circumstances, lean, low-lived, meager, meagre, mean, needful, needy, pauper, peeled, penniless, penurious, piteous, pitiable, pitiful, poor man, poverty stricken, scanty, small, sterile, stingy, void), sãrman (indigent, pauper, poor devil, wretched), sårac (miserable), slab (adynamic, angular, bad, cold, cranky, crazy, dicky, dim, Dotty, dull, faint, faintly, feckless, feeble, feebly, female, flabby, flaccid, flat, fleshless, flimsy, footless, forceless, frail, gaunt, groggy, helpless, impotent, inner, jaded, jejune, languid, languishing, languorous, lax, lean, Lenten, light, loose, low, meager, meagre, mean, mild, milk and water, namby-pamby, nerveless, one horse, pale, peaked, penny-a-line, pimping, poorly, powerless, quiet, remotely, rickety, scraggy, scrawny, shaky, sickly, silly, skinny, slack, slight, small, soft, sorry, spare, squeal, stringent, tender, thin, washy, weak, weakly), umil (humble, humbly, low, lowly, mean, meek, modest, small, submissive), neproductiv (fruitless, lean, non-productive, unproductive). (various references)

   

Russian 

  

бедный (beggarly, hand-to-mouth, impecunious, lean, livid, low-lived, miserable, one horse, penurious, poverty stricken, poverty-stricken). (various references)

   

Scottish

  

bochd (miserable, poor person, sick). (various references)

   

Serbo-Croatian

  

slab (dickey, dicky, feckless, feeble, flabby, frail, infirm, languid, languorous, low, meager, meagre, nerveless, powerless, punk, remote, short, sickly, slim, tenuous, thin, trick, undernourished, unlikely, washy, weak), siromah (pauper), siromašan (destitute, have not, impecunious, indigent, necessitous, needy, pauper, underprivileged), oskudan (barren, deficient, destitute, exiguous, meager, meagre, necessitous, needy, penurious, scant, scanty, scarce, short, shy, skimpy, spare, sparing, stingy, stringent, tight), nikakav (needy, no, none, pelting, trashy), neplodan (barren, infertile, sterile, unfruitful), loš (abominable, bad, gross, lousy, mean, miserable, refuse, shoddy, trashy, vile), jadan (deplorable, jejune, lamentable, miserable, pelting, piteous, pitiable, wretched), bedan (abject, beggarly, crummy, distressful, lamentable, mangy, miserable, needy, pelting, pitiable, rubbishy, squalid, wretched), štur. (various references)

   

Spanish

  

pobre (abject, beggar, destitute, dismal, hungry, impecunious, indigent, jimp, meager, meagre, mingy, miserable, miserly, needy, pathetic, pathetical, pauper, penurious, scrappy, wretched), malo (Amiss, bad, black-hearted, bum, difficult, disagreeable, disgusting, erroneous, evil, evil-wishing, hard, ill, inconvenient, lower, mischievous, miserable, mistaken, nasty, naughty, ornery, punk, sick, tacky, tough, troubled, unsound, villain, wicked, wretched, wrong), miserable (abject, beggarly, dismal, meager, measly, miserable, moldy, mouldy, paltry, sordid, squalid, twopenny, wretched), indigente (destitute, indigent, miserable, necessitous, needy), deplorable (deplorable, dismal, miserable, pitiful, regrettable). (various references)

   

Sranan

  

poti (lay down, miserable, place, put, put down), pina (abide, bear, endure, miserable, put up with, suffer), ogri (bad, miserable, nasty), kway (bad, miserable, nasty). (various references)

   

Swahili

  

maskini (miserable), hafifu (faint, light, miserable, weak). (various references)

   

Swedish

  

fattig (impecunious, impoverished, indigent, meagre, miserable, necessitous, needy, paltry, penurious, poverty-striken), dålig (bad, evil, foul, funny, ignoble, ill, indifferent, inferior, miserable, nasty, off, poorly, sick, unsound, unwell, weak), torftig (austere, barren, insubstantial, jejune, meagre, needy, penurious, scanty, skimpy, threadbare), stackars, arm (arm, branch, destitute, miserable, wretched). (various references)

   

Tagalog

  

masamâ (bad, miserable, nasty), mahírap (miserable). (various references)

   

Turkish

  

kötü (bad, badly, black, chintzy, devilish, dread, dreadfull, evil, feeble, fierce, grotty, harmful, haunted, hedge, hellish, horrible, horrid, ill, indifferent, iniquitous, lousy, malign, mis-, miscreant, miserable, nasty, nefarious, obnoxious, off, offensive, poorly, portentous, purple, rough, seamy, shady, sinister, sticky, stinking, ugly, unhallowed, unrighteous, vicious, wicked, worse, wrongful), fena (angrily, bad, badly, evil, foul, ill, malicious, miserable, nasty, poorly, sinful, sinister, unholy, vicious, wicked). (various references)

   

Turkmen 

  

myrtar (bad), gedaя (beggar, poor person), garyp. (various references)

   

Ukrainian

  

кепський (bad, dying, miserable, moldy, mouldy, nasty, naught, naughty), нужденний (destitute, helpless, indigent, miserable, necessitous, needful, needy, penniless, poverty stricken, poverty-struck), нещасний (abject, disastrous, sinister, unfortunate, wretched), незначний (bare, exiguous, imponderable, inconsiderable, inessential, insignificant, little, minor, minute, negligible, niggling, nugacious, off, one horse, outside, petty, potty, puny, pygmy, slender, slight, small, trivial), незаможний (beggar, have not), неприємний (acerbic, bad, beastly, brackish, disagreeable, displeased, displeasing, distasteful, grisly, hack, importune, nasty, objectionable, obnoxious, offensive, painful, plaguy, provoking, snooty, tedious, ugly, unfavorable, unfavourable, ungracious, ungrateful, unlovable, unloveable, unlovely, unpleasant, unwelcome), непоживний (unsubstantial), недостатній (defective, deficient, meager, meagre, scarce, scrimpy, short, skimpy, wanting), ниций (rascally, sinister), жалюгідний (abject, beggarly, caitiff, contemptible, deplorable, forlorn, impoverished, lamentable, mean, miserable, parsimonious, piteous, pitiable, pitiful, queachy, snide, sorry, tatty, woeful, woesome, wretched), бідняки, бідний (bare, barren, destitute, fortuneless, lean, necessitous, needful, needy, one horse, pauper, penurious, scrannel, shabby, tenuous, underprivileged), покійний (deceased, defunct, departed). (various references)

   

Vietnamese 

  

yếu thô thiển đáng thương, tầm thường (characterless, fiddle-faddle, fiddling, inconsequential, jerkwater, picayune, platitudinarian, platitudinous, prosy, soulless, straw, trivial, unideal, uninsprired), tội nghiệp đáng khinh, tồi (deplorable, doggerel, foul, illy, poorly, punk, rotten, third-rate, threepenny, trashy, wretched), nghèo (fortuneless, shoestring), không đáng kể hèn nhát, kém (coarse, less, low, third-rate, vile), hèn hạ (abject, base, basely, blithering, despicable, dirtily, dirty, dishonourable, meanly, picayune, scabbily, scurvy, shabby, vile), bần cùng xấu. (various references)

   

Welsh

  

tlawd (destitute, miserable). (various references)

   

Yucatec

  

otsil (miserable), k'as (bad, miserable, nasty). (various references)

   

Zulu

  

-mpofu (miserable), -bolile (bad, miserable, nasty), -bi (bad, miserable, nasty). (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

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Ancestral Language Translations: Poor

LanguagePeriodTranslations
Latin500 BCE-Modern

angusta, angustam, angusti, angustiorem, angusto, angustos, angustum, angustus, egens, egentem, egentes, egenti, egentis, egentium, exigua, exigui, exiguo, exiguum, exile, humile, humilem, humiles, humili, humilia, humilibus, humilior, humiliora, humiliorem, humiliores, humilis, humilium, humillima, inope, inopem, inopes, inopi, inopia, inopis, inops, inopum, levidensis, macer, malus, miser, misera, miseram, miseri, miseris, misero, miseros, miserrima, pauper, paupercula, pauperculam, pauperculum, paupere, pauperem, pauperes, pauperi, pauperibus, pauperis, pauperum, penuriosus, phaulius. (various references)

Old English450-1100

earm. (various references)

Persian800-Modern

darvesh, darvish. (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Bible Trace: Poor

LanguageDateSourceProverbs Chapter 22, Verse 16
Greek (transliterated)250 BCSeptuagintO sukofantwn penhta polla poiei ta eautou didwsin de plousiw ep' elassoni
Latin405VulgateQui calumniatur pauperem ut augeat divitias suas dabit ipse ditiori et egebit
Middle English1395WyclifWho wrong chalengeth the pore, that he eeche his richessis, he shal yyue to a richere, and neden.
Jacobean English1611King JamesHe that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.
Victorian English1833WebsterHe that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.
Basic English1964OgdenHe who is cruel to the poor for the purpose of increasing his profit, and he who gives to the man of wealth, will only come to be in need.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Matched Bible Translations: Poor

LanguageProverbs Chapter 22, Verse 16
Cebuano¶ Kadtong magadaugdaug sa kabus aron sa pagdugang sa iyang ganancia, Ug kadtong magahatag sa adunahan, modangat lamang sa kawalad-on.
CroatianTko tlaèi siromaha, taj mu koristi; tko daje bogatašu, samo mu šteti.
DanishVold mod den ringe øger hans Eje, Gave til Rigmand gør ham kun fattig. -
DutchDie den arme verdrukt, om het zijne te vermeerderen, en den rijke geeft, komt zekerlijk tot gebrek.
FinnishVaivaiselle on voitoksi, jos häntä sorretaan, rikkaalle tappioksi, jos hänelle annetaan.
FrenchOpprimer le pauvre pour augmenter son bien, C`est donner au riche pour n`arriver qu`à la disette.
GermanWer dem Armen Unrecht tut, daß seines Guts viel werde, der wird auch einem Reichen geben, und Mangel haben.
Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hariSiapa mau menjadi kaya dengan menindas orang miskin dan memberi hadiah kepada orang berada pada akhirnya akan melarat.
Indonesian-Terjemahan LamaBarangsiapa yang menganiayakan orang miskin, ia itu menjadikan dia kaya; dan orang yang memberi hadiah akan orang kaya, ia itu membawa akan dia kepada kepapaan.
ItalianOpprimere il povero non fa che arricchirlo, dare a un ricco non fa che impoverirlo.
Maori¶ Ko te tangata e tukino ana i te rawakore kia maha atu ai he taonga mana, me te tangata hoki e hoatu mea ana ki te tangata taonga, ka tutuki raua ki te muhore kau.
NorwegianÅ undertrykke den fattige tjener bare til å øke hans gods; å gi til den rike volder ham bare tap.
PortugueseO que para aumentar o seu lucro oprime o pobre, e dá ao rico, certamente chegará à: penuria.   
RumanianCine asuprewte pe sqrac ca sq-wi mqreascq avuyia, va trebui sq dea wi el altuia mai bogat wi va duce lipsq. -
RussianлФП ПВЙЦБЕФ ВЕДОПЗП, ЮФПВЩ ХНОПЦЙФШ УЧПЕ ВПЗБФУФЧП, Й ЛФП ДБЕФ ВПЗБФПНХ, ФПФ ПВЕДОЕЕФ.
SpanishEl que para enriquecerse explota al pobre o da al rico, ciertamente vendrá a pobreza.
SwedishDen som förtrycker den arme bereder honom vinning men den som giver åt den rike vållar honom allenast förlust.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Derivations & Misspellings: Poor

Derivations

Words beginning with "poor": poorer, poorest, poorhouse, poorhouses, poori, pooris, poorish, poorly, poorness, poornesses, poortith, poortiths. (additional references)

Words ending with "poor": nonpoor, spoor. (additional references)

Words containing "poor": spoored, spooring, spoors, whippoorwill, whippoorwills. (additional references)


Misspellings

"Poor" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: apor, apour, oor, opar, opo, opoe, oppor, opport, opr, Panor, Paor, peooow, peoz, pero, Pforr, pgood, phoof, phor, Phorr, Pibor, picor, piof, piri, Piro, pivor, plor, plour, poar, poare, Poari, pobo, pobr, pocor, podo, poer, poho, Pohorje, poir, pojo, Pokot, Pomo, pomr, Ponor, poo, poob, pooc, poog, pooir, pooj, pook, Poom, Pooof, pooq, poore, poori, poorn, poors, Poort, poot, pooz, popr, por, Porec, porex, poro, poros, porq, porr, poui, pouri, pourt, pouru, poury, povo, proar, pror, Prozor, psor, psora, pubr, Pujo, puoh, puoi, purb, purm, Pwooor, zoor. (additional references)

Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references).

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Rhyming with "Poor"

# of Phoneme MatchesPronunciationWord(s) rhyming with "poor" (pronounced puh"r)
3p uh" rspoor.
2-uh" rallure, assure, boor, brochure, buhr, couture, cure, demure, detour, endure, ensure, entrepreneur, immature, impure, insure, inure, lure, manure, mature, moor, obscure, premature, procure, pure, reassure, reinsure, secure, sure, tour, unsure.

Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

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Anagrams: Poor

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

Words within the letters "o-o-p-r"

-1 letter: pro.

-2 letters: op, or.

 Words containing the letters "o-o-p-r"
 

+1 letter: droop, orlop, poori, porno, promo, proof, proso, sopor, spoor, troop.

 

+2 letters: cooper, droops, droopy, hooper, looper, morpho, operon, orlops, pogrom, poorer, pooris, poorly, pornos, porose, porous, prolog, promos, pronto, proofs, prosos, proton, scroop, sopors, spoors, torpor, troops, uproot, uropod.

 

+3 letters: apropos, blooper, carpool, comport, coopers, coopery, corpora, drooped, dropout, foretop, goopier, gosport, harpoon, hoopers, loopers, loopier, morphos, nonpoor, nonpros, oosperm, oospore, operons, operose, opposer, outcrop, outdrop, outport, outpour, overtop, pandoor, parodoi, parodos, partook, patroon, pogroms, polaron, poofter, poorest, poorish, popcorn, popover, porcino, portico, portion, prebook, preboom, precook, precool, prenoon, proctor, prologs, prolong, promote, pronota, pronoun, proofed, proofer, propone, propose, prosody, prosoma, protons, proviso, provoke, provost, proximo, reproof, rollmop, rolltop, rooftop, scooper, scroops, snooper, soprano, soursop, sponsor, spoofer, spoored, sporoid, stooper, swooper, taproom, taproot, topwork, torpedo, torpors, towrope, trollop, trooped, trooper, uproots, uropods, whooper.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.

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INDEX

1. Definition
2. Synonyms
3. Crosswords
4. Usage: Modern
5. Usage: Commercial
6. Images: Slideshow
7. Images: Photo Album
8. Images: Digital Art
9. Quotations: Familiar
10. Quotations: Historic
11. Quotations: Fiction
12. Quotations: Non-fiction
13. Quotations: Spoken
14. Quotations: Speeches
15. Usage Frequency
16. Names: Frequency
17. Names: Derived from
18. Expressions
19. Expressions: Internet
20. Translations: Modern
21. Translations: Ancient
22. Bible Trace
23. Derivations
24. Rhymes
25. Anagrams
26. Bibliography


  

Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.