poor

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”)).

adj

1. With no or few possessions or money, particularly in relation to contemporaries who do have them.
   We were so poor that we couldn't afford shoes.
2. Of low quality.
   That was a poor performance.
   Meanwhile, due to a lack of wind, air quality in west Taiwan was poor yesterday, the Environmental Protection Administration said. Air quality could deteriorate early this morning, triggering a “red” alert — which signals unhealthy air quality — in some parts of Yunlin, Chiayi and Tainan counties, it said. March 28, 2021, “Taiwan News Quick Take”, in Taipei Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2021-03-27, Taiwan News, page 3
3. Used to express pity.
   Oh you poor little thing.
   Mr. Campion sighed. ‘Poor man,’ he said. ‘He sees his great sacrifices rejected by the gods, and so, no doubt, all the Misses Eumenides let loose again to plague him.’ 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 15, in The China Governess
4. Deficient in a specified way.
   Cow's milk is poor in iron.
5. Inadequate, insufficient.
   I received a poor reward for all my hard work.
   That I have wronged no Man, will be a poor plea or apology at the last day. a. 1686, Benjamin Calamy, Sermon 1
   The temptation was more than mortal heart could resist. She gave him the promise he sought, stifling the voice of conscience; and as she clung to his neck it seemed to her that heaven was a poor thing compared with a man's love. 1902, John Buchan, The Outgoing of the Tide
6. Free from self-assertion; not proud or arrogant; meek.

noun

1. (plural only) The poor people of a society or the world collectively, the poor class of a society.
   Harry Truman used to say that 13 or 14 million Americans had their interests represented in Washington, but that the rest of the people had to depend on the President of the United States. That is how I felt about the 35 million American poor. They had no voice and no champion. Whatever the cost, I was determined to represent them. Through me they would have an advocate and, I believed, new hope. 1971, Lyndon Johnson, The Vantage Point, Holt, Reinhart & Winston, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 39
   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. 1972, Anonymous translation of Friedrich Engels as "Draft of a Communist Confession of Faith", International Publishers
   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. 2010 Jan. 27, Matt Taibbi, "Populism: Just Like Racism!", True/Slant
   The sun shines on the rich and the poor alike but, come the rain, the rich have better umbrellas.
   The poor are always with us.
   The rich are often so insulated from reality that they think the poor have extra money they could save for more than a short time.

noun

1. (countable, originally chiefly Scotland) A poor person.
   The poors are at it again.
   ...me vint of ane king to huam a poure acsede ane peny... 1340, Laurent du Bois, translated by Dan Michel, Ayenbite of Inwyt, page 195
   He had given somewhat to every poore in the Parish. 1625, Thomas Jackson, A Treatise Containing the Originall of Vnbeliefe, Pt. v, Ch. xvi, §6
   I don't understand, Simmons! I have all the money in the world, but I'm still unhappy! […] It must be the poors! Those leeches have been stealing my happiness somehow! 2023, James Sandoval, “Buying Happiness”, in But A Jape (webcomic)
2. (obsolete) Synonym of poor cod.

verb

1. (transitive, rare) Synonym of impoverish, to make poor.
   It is very evident that Americans are being ‘poored down’ to suit the world socialist agenda, and to maximize profits for the international corporations. 2003 August 10, Dallas News, p. 3
2. (intransitive, obsolete) To become poor.
   The mone of this realme is born out in gret quantite and the realme puryt of the sammyn. 1467, Acts of the Parliament of Scotland, Vol. II, p. 88
3. (obsolete) To call poor.