penury suggests a cramping or oppressive lack of money.
a catastrophic illness that condemned them to years of penury
want and destitution imply extreme poverty that threatens life itself through starvation or exposure.
lived in a perpetual state of want
the widespread destitution in countries beset by famine
Examples of poverty in a Sentence
He was born in poverty.
There is a poverty of information about the disease.
Recent Examples on the WebIn the meantime, nearly 82 percent of Venezuelans live in poverty, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.—Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 18 Apr. 2024 Yet most of those Americans are financially unprepared to stop working, and many risk living in poverty, according to a new analysis.—Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 18 Apr. 2024 See all Example Sentences for poverty
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'poverty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English poverte, from Anglo-French poverté, from Latin paupertat-, paupertas, from pauper poor — more at poor
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