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Definition of poor adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

poor

adjective
 
 
/pɔː(r)/,
 
/pʊə(r)/
 
/pʊr/,
 
/pɔːr/
(comparative poorer, superlative poorest)
Idioms
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    having little money

  1.  
     having very little money; not having enough money for basic needs
    • They were too poor to buy shoes for the kids.
    • We aim to help the poorest families.
    • It's among the poorer countries of the world.
    • This is a relatively poor neighbourhood.
    • Andrew grew up desperately poor.
    • They were so poor that they couldn't afford to feed their family.
    opposite rich see also dirt poor
    Synonyms poorpoordisadvantaged ▪ needy ▪ impoverished ▪ deprived ▪ penniless ▪ hard upThese words all describe somebody who has very little or no money and therefore cannot satisfy their basic needs.poor having very little money; not having enough money for basic needs:
    • They were too poor to buy shoes for the kids.
    disadvantaged having less money and fewer opportunities than most people in society:
    • socially disadvantaged sections of the community
    needy poor:
    • It’s a charity that provides help for needy children.
    impoverished (in the media) poor:
    • Thousands of impoverished peasants are desperate to move to the cities.
    deprived [usually before noun] without enough food, education, and all the things that are necessary for people to live a happy and comfortable life     poor, needy, impoverished or deprived?Poor is the most general of these words and can be used to describe yourself, another individual person, people as a group, or a country or an area. Needy is mostly used to describe people considered as a group: it is not used to talk about yourself or individual people: poor/​needy children/​families • They were too needy to buy shoes for the kids. Impoverished is used, especially in journalism, to talk about poor countries and the people who live there. To talk about poor areas in rich countries, use deprived.penniless (literary) having no money; very poor:
    • He died penniless in Paris.
    hard up (informal) having very little money, especially for a short period of time:
    • I was always hard up as a student.
    Patterns
    • poor/​disadvantaged/​needy/​impoverished/​deprived/​penniless/​hard-up people/​families
    • poor/​disadvantaged/​needy/​impoverished/​deprived areas
    • poor/​disadvantaged/​impoverished countries
    • a(n) poor/​disadvantaged/​impoverished/​deprived background
    Extra Examples
    • He was getting richer and richer as they got poorer and poorer.
    • They remained poor all their lives.
    • Poor people need income not handouts.
    • She was too poor to afford a bike.
    • Half a million poor children around the world suffer from vitamin A deficiency.
    • The gap between rich and poor nations grows.
    • Farmers in poor countries are generally the victims.
    • They build low-cost housing for poor families.
    • The rural south has historically been the poorest region of the country.
    Topics Moneya1, People in societya1, Social issuesa1
  2. the poor
     noun [plural] people who have very little money Many people now prefer not to say the poor because it suggests that they form one large group of people who are all the same and the only important thing about them is their poverty. You can use expressions such as people in need, low-income families/households or people from disadvantaged backgrounds/communities instead.
    • They provided food and shelter for the poor.
    opposite the rich see also working poor
    More Like This Plural adjectival nounsPlural adjectival nouns
    Topics People in societyb1

    3. unfortunate

  3.  
     [only before noun] deserving sympathy
    • Have you heard about poor old Harry? His wife's left him.
    • It's hungry—the poor little thing.
    • ‘I have stacks of homework to do.’ ‘Oh, you poor thing.’
    • Some poor soul will have to clean the house after the party.
    Extra Examples
    • Come over here and help your poor old mother.
    • Those poor horses have far too much to carry.
    • The poor kid isn't being properly cared for.
    4.

    not good

  4.  
     not good; of a quality that is low or lower than expected
    • the party’s poor performance in the election
    • The food was of very poor quality.
    • She's been in poor health for some time now.
    • The cottage was in poor physical condition.
    • It was raining heavily and visibility was poor.
    • poor food/light/soil
    • to have a poor opinion of somebody (= to not think well of somebody)
    see also piss-poor
    Extra Examples
    • The work was of an extremely poor standard.
    • He makes some pretty poor decisions throughout the novel.
    • Many health problems are related to poor diet and sedentary lifestyles.
    • Her guitar playing is poor.
    • He was frustrated about his poor exam performance.
    • There was a reduced crop because of poor growing conditions.
    • He showed poor judgement by hiring her.
    • Poor management has damaged the land in the past.
    • The soil was so poor that it couldn't support any vegetation.
    • Watching the concert on TV was a poor substitute for being at the live performance.
    • The city has the poorest exam results in the region.
    • We received a very poor return on our investment.
    • He wanted to be a Navy pilot but was disqualified due to poor eyesight.
    • The country is criticised for its poor human rights record.
    Topics Health problemsb1
  5.  
     [usually before noun] (of a person) not good at something
    • a poor swimmer
    • a poor judge of character
    • She's a good teacher but a poor manager.
    • a poor sailor (= somebody who easily gets sick at sea)
    • poor at (doing) something Many companies are poor at dealing with telephone complaints.
    6.

    having little of something

  6.  
     poor in something having very small amounts of something
    • a country poor in natural resources
    • soil poor in nutrients
    • There's very little soil here and it's poor in quality.
    opposite rich see also time-poor
    7. Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French poure, from Latin uper.
Idioms
be/come a poor second, third, etc.
  1. (especially British English) to finish a long way behind the winner in a race, competition, etc.
Wordfinder
the poor man’s somebody/something
  1. a person or thing that is similar to but of a lower quality than a particular famous person or thing
    • Sparkling white wine is the poor man's champagne.
See poor in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee poor in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: poor

Nearby words

elaborate
adjective
 
 
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