poor

English Online Dictionary. What means poor‎? What does poor mean?

English

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English povre, povere, from Old French (and Anglo-Norman) povre, poure, from Latin pauper, from Old Latin *pavo-pars (literally “getting little”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- (“few, small”). Doublet of pauper.

Displaced native arm, wantsome, Middle English unlede (“poor”) (from Old English unlǣde), Middle English unweli, unwely (“poor, unwealthy”) (from Old English un- + weliġ (“well-to-do, prosperous, rich”)).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation)
  • (pour–poor merger) IPA^(key): /pɔː(ɹ)/
  • (without the pour–poor merger) IPA^(key): (now rare) /pʊə(ɹ)/
• (US, Canada)
  • IPA^(key): (pour–poor merger) /poɹ/; (without the pour–poor merger) /pʊɚ/, /pʊɹ/
• (Scotland, Northern Ireland) IPA^(key): /pʉːɹ/
• (Ireland) IPA^(key): /puːɹ/
• (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /poː/
• (India) IPA^(key): /ˈpʊ(ː)ə(r)/
• (non-rhotic, show–sure merger, African-American Vernacular) IPA^(key): /poʊ/
• Rhymes: -ʊə(ɹ), -ɔː(ɹ)
• Homophones: pour, pore (pour–poor merger); paw (paw–poor merger); Poe (show–sure merger)

Adjective

poor (comparative poorer, superlative poorest)

1. With no or few possessions or money, particularly in relation to contemporaries who do have them.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:impoverished

   Antonyms: rich, wealthy
2. Of low quality.

   Synonym: inferior

   Antonym: good
3. (attributive only) Worthy of pity.

   Synonym: pitiable
4. Deficient in a specified way.

   Antonym: rich

5. Inadequate, insufficient.

   Antonyms: adequate, decent
6. Free from self-assertion; not proud or arrogant; meek.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

poor pl (plural only)

1. The poor people of a society or the world collectively, the poor class of a society.
   • 1972, Anonymous translation of Friedrich Engels as "Draft of a Communist Confession of Faith", International Publishers:

     Then there have not always been proletarians?
     No. There have always been poor and working classes; and those who worked were almost always the poor. But there have not always been proletarians, just as competition has not always been free.

   • 2010 Jan. 27, Matt Taibbi, "Populism: Just Like Racism!", True/Slant:

     This is the same Randian bullshit that we've been hearing from people like Brooks for ages and its entire premise is really revolting and insulting—this idea that the way society works is that the productive "rich" feed the needy "poor," and that any attempt by the latter to punish the former for "excesses" might inspire Atlas to Shrug his way out of town and leave the helpless poor on their own to starve. That's basically Brooks's entire argument here. Yes, the rich and powerful do rig the game in their own favor, and yes, they are guilty of "excesses"—but fucking deal with it, if you want to eat.

Translations

Noun

poor (plural poors)

2. (countable, originally chiefly Scotland) A poor person.
3. (obsolete) Synonym of poor cod.

Usage notes

The countable sense of poor, despite having a long history and continuing existence in some Scottish dialects, is now generally parsed as nonstandard slang and frequently employed with ironic condescension as a critique of supposed upper-class views towards the poor.

Derived terms

• deserving poor
• undeserving poor
• Europoor

Translations

Verb

poor (third-person singular simple present poors, present participle pooring, simple past and past participle poored)

1. (transitive, rare) Synonym of impoverish, to make poor.
   • 2003 August 10, Dallas News, p. 3:

     It is very evident that Americans are being ‘poored down’ to suit the world socialist agenda, and to maximize profits for the international corporations.

2. (intransitive, obsolete) To become poor.
   • 1467, Acts of the Parliament of Scotland, Vol. II, p. 88:

     The mone of this realme is born out in gret quantite and the realme puryt of the sammyn.

3. (obsolete) To call poor.

Usage notes

Although having a long and chiefly Scottish history, verbal use of poor is now generally parsed as a nonstandard innovation and employed within quotes.

References

• “poor, adj. and n¹.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
• “poor, n².”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
• “poor, v.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
• “poor”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• poro-, roop

Limburgish

Alternative forms

• Poor, Porré (Eupen)

Etymology

From Walloon porea.

Noun

poor m

1. leek

Old French

Noun

poor oblique singular, f (oblique plural poors, nominative singular poor, nominative plural poors)

1. fear