poor
poor — adjective
1. not having much money or many things, and often finding daily life hard
not having much money or many things, and often finding daily life hard
The poor family shared one small room above the bakery.
before noun: poor family
After rent and bills, Maya felt too poor to buy new shoes.
pattern: too poor to + verb
Many poor farmers in the village walk to market each week.
Even with two jobs, Carlos stayed poor through the winter.
linking verb: stay poor
The school gives free lunches to poor children in the area.
- poor family
- poor children
- stay poor
- too poor to buy something
- poor farmers
- broke
informal and often temporary, especially after spending money
- penniless
stronger, meaning no money is left at all
- needy
focuses on needing help or basic things
- impoverished
more formal and often used for places or groups
Grammar Patterns
a poor family
be poor
too poor to buy something
Usage Note
Usually about people, families, or communities. For a shortage of one named thing such as jobs or vitamins, use sense 2 instead, often with 'poor in'.
Common Mistakes
2. having too little of a named quality, material, or other thing
having too little of a named quality, material, or other thing
This dry soil is poor in plant food, so beans do not grow well.
pattern: poor in + noun
The village is poor in jobs, so many young people leave.
poor in + resource noun
Her first draft was poor in detail and missed key dates.
This lunch is poor in protein, so Maya feels hungry again.
The website is poor in useful information for new parents.
- poor in jobs
- poor in detail
- poor in color
- poor in vitamins
- poor in fresh vegetables
Grammar Patterns
be poor in jobs
be poor in detail
be poor in color
Usage Note
Usually follows 'be' and most often appears in the pattern 'poor in + noun'. Distinguish from sense 3: this sense says what is missing, while sense 3 judges quality or performance as bad.
Common Mistakes
3. not good enough, or showing weak quality, skill, amount, or results
not good enough, or showing weak quality, skill, amount, or results
We got poor service, and dinner arrived cold after an hour.
collocation: poor service
Nina was poor at tennis until she practiced every morning.
pattern: poor at + activity
The team made a poor start and lost two easy points.
collocation: poor start
Rain and wind gave us poor light for taking photos.
Ethan's poor memory for names caused trouble at the meeting.
- poor service
- poor start
- poor light
- poor memory
- poor at tennis
- bad
the most general everyday word
- weak
often used for performance, arguments, or results
- inferior
more formal and often used for quality
- inadequate
formal and stresses not meeting a need or standard
Grammar Patterns
poor service
be poor at tennis
a poor start
Usage Note
Can describe things, results, or how well a person does something. 'Poor at' for ability belongs here, not sense 2, because it evaluates performance rather than showing a missing substance or resource.
Common Mistakes
4. used before a person, animal, or name when you feel sorry for them
used before a person, animal, or name when you feel sorry for them
Poor Emma dropped her cake on the bus floor.
before a name to show sympathy
The poor dog waited outside the clinic in the rain.
before noun: poor dog
Poor Dad missed the train and walked home in wet shoes.
Everyone felt sorry for poor Mrs. Lin after the storm.
Poor Kevin broke his glasses during the class trip.
- poor Emma
- poor dog
- poor Dad
- poor Mrs. Lin
- poor Kevin
- unfortunate
more formal and less emotional
- pitiful
stronger and can sound negative or insulting
- luckless
focuses on bad luck and is less common
Grammar Patterns
poor Emma
poor dog
poor Dad
Usage Note
Almost always comes before the noun or name. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense does not mean someone lacks money, only that their situation makes you feel sympathy.
Common Mistakes
To finish very far behind the person or team that wins a race or competition.
Sara came a poor second in the 100-meter race.
Our team was a poor third in the final standings.
A person or thing that is similar to but not as good as a famous person or thing.
This budget smartphone is the poor man's iPhone.
He is often called the poor man's Picasso.
poor — noun
1. people with very little money, spoken of as a social group
people with very little money, spoken of as a social group
The church opened its hall to feed the poor each night.
pattern: the poor
New laws should protect the poor, not only the rich.
contrast: the poor / the rich
The play shows how the poor often carry the hardest part of a crisis.
Many leaders speak about the poor but ignore housing costs.
Aid groups raised money for the poor after the river flood.
- feed the poor
- protect the poor
- help the poor
- money for the poor
- the poor and the rich
- the needy
focuses on people needing help
- the disadvantaged
more formal and broader than money alone
- low-income people
neutral and common in policy or news writing
- the rich
people with a lot of money
- the wealthy
more formal than 'the rich'
Grammar Patterns
the poor need help
protect the poor
money for the poor
Usage Note
Usually appears as 'the poor' and takes a plural verb. It refers to poor people in general, not to one person, so sense 1 of the adjective is used for 'a poor child' or 'poor families'.
Common Mistakes
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: adjective/1
For money problems, 'poor' is the broad everyday word. It can describe a person, family, area, or country with little money over a long time. 'Broke' is informal and often temporary, especially when someone has spent too much and must wait for payday. 'Penniless' is stronger: it suggests no money is left at all. 'Needy' focuses less on the wallet itself and more on needing help, food, or support. 'Impoverished' is more formal and often used in news or social discussion about places and groups. You can say, 'I'm broke until Friday,' but 'The family has been poor for years' or 'The flood left them penniless.'
Common collocations
Etymology
Poor came into English from Old French, from a Latin word meaning someone with little. The basic idea of lacking what is needed stayed the same, and English later extended it from money to shortages, weak quality, and the sympathetic use before a name.