poor

adjective

ˈpu̇r How to pronounce poor (audio)
Definition of poornext
1
as in impoverished
lacking money or material possessions every year, we make up a basket of food at Thanksgiving for a poor family in the neighborhood

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation land that is too poor for farming

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in scarce
less plentiful than what is normal, necessary, or desirable a poor crop because of the drought this year

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard a pretty poor musician, even for a garage band

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in terrible
of low quality the poor workmanship of the goods from that store

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in pitiful
deserving of one's pity aw, the poor kitten hurt its paw

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of poor The authority also noted that this is the largest fine it’s ever levied against a company for poor data practices. — Alan Henry, PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2026 These mistakes may indicate poor controls, training or processes, raising concerns about how responsibly personal data is managed. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026 His campaign has raised concerns about low state academic performance ratings and poor student attendance, along with the closure of Winston Intermediate School of Excellence and Wrenn Middle School in 2024. — Sophia Veneziano, San Antonio Express-News, 16 Oct. 2026 The settlement comes after a scathing 2024 DOJ report said the Lexington Police Department routinely violated citizens' civil rights in the rural, poor, majority-Black city located about 65 miles (100 kilometers) north of the state's capital. — ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for poor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poor
  1. impoverished
  2. desolate
  3. scarce
  4. unacceptable
  5. terrible
  6. pitiful
  7. broke
  8. barren
Adjective
  • The impoverished Reds work as slave labor in the mines of Mars, while the super-strong Golds rule the solar system and war on each other.
    — Jordan Moreau, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Prosecutors accuse him of participating in schemes to divert hundreds of millions of dollars from Venezuelan government programs intended to provide housing, food and other necessities to the country’s impoverished population.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of impoverished
Adjective
  • As filmmakers, they were drawn to the unexpected beauty of the desolate, postindustrial landscape.
    — Kim Velsey, Curbed, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Obscenities, the referee’s whistle, and the thud of boots into balls—and sometimes shins—easily carry across these desolate fields.
    — Vanda Mayer, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of desolate
Adjective
  • The scarce resource today is a person willing to stand behind what a test claims to prove.
    — Jay Singh, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The conventional seed sector is dominated by hybrid and GMO cotton varieties, making certified organic and non-GMO seed scarce and difficult to obtain.
    — Jennifer Bringle, Footwear News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of scarce
Adjective
  • The idea of not spending evenings with my kid is, kids are, is completely unacceptable.
    — Michael Birnbaum The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026
  • OpenAI took months to discover the incident and notify the Australian agencies affected — that’s unacceptable by my standard.
    — Rumman Chowdhury, Vogue, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of unacceptable
Adjective
  • And then none of it mattered because his special teams bailed him out with a big kick return (thanks to a terrible decision by Eagles coach Nick Sirianni to even allow a kick return in the first place) followed by a walk-off field goal.
    — Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The story follows the transformation of Adriana (Colin), a woman shattered by a terrible murder and who discovers the strength to start over, driven by an unquenchable thirst for justice.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of terrible
Adjective
  • Just 7% of Democrats approve, along with a pitiful 12% of independents.
    — Jon Keller, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Herbert's six interceptions is only surpassed by Drake Maye's pitiful start to the season.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of pitiful
Adjective
  • Chastain goes for broke with melodrama as both the real and fake Mommies.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The fact that the region’s broke local government is paying a total of 12 million for a renewable partnership with the Centre Pompidou doesn’t help.
    — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of broke
Adjective
  • Centered on the town of Bawiti, this remote depression in Egypt’s Western Desert is surrounded by barren hills, date palms, hot springs and sweeping desert landscapes.
    — Jamie Carter, Space.com, 10 Oct. 2026
  • In Samuel Beckett's tragicomedy, two men wait beside a barren tree for someone called Godot who never arrives.
    — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of barren

Browse Nearby Words

pooped
poor
poorish
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Poor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poor. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All