poor: Meaning and Definition of

poor

1. having little or no money, goods, or other means of support: a poor family living on welfare.
2. dependent upon charity or public support.
3. (of a country, institution, etc.) meagerly supplied or endowed with resources or funds.
4. characterized by or showing poverty.
5. deficient or lacking in something specified: a region poor in mineral deposits.
6. faulty or inferior, as in construction: poor workmanship.
7. deficient in desirable ingredients, qualities, or the like: poor soil.
8. excessively lean or emaciated, as cattle.
9. of an inferior, inadequate, or unsatisfactory kind: poor health.
10. lacking in skill, ability, or training: a poor cook.
11. deficient in moral excellence; cowardly, abject, or mean.
12. scanty, meager, or paltry in amount or number: a poor audience.
13. humble; modest: They shared their poor meal with a stranger.
14. unfortunate; hapless: The poor dog was limping.
15. extremely poor.
16. extremely poor; impoverished.

1. poor persons collectively (usually prec. by the): sympathy for the poor.