Basic+ Word of the Day: poor

poor (adjective)

Poor means ‘having little or no money.’

• Mary's family was poor when she was a child.
• The rich have many advantages over the poor.

Poor also means ‘below the usual standard’ or ‘inferior.’

• Dan's mother worried about his poor grades in school.
• The poor workmanship of that table makes it very unstable.

Poor also means ‘unfortunate.’

• Our poor dog was lost for several days.

Don't confuse it with

pour: to cause to flow from one container to another. Example: “Please pour the orange juice into glasses.”

Common uses

as poor as a church mouse: extremely poor. Example: “When my grandfather came to America, he was as poor as a church mouse.”

In pop culture

Listen to Eric Clapton and B. B. King singing “Help the Poor.”

There are other meanings of poor.