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
Try This Instead
Try This InsteadFor
Try This
poor quality
a poor judgment
an unwise judgment
a lousy judgment
a questionable judgment
a horrible judgment
an improper judgment
a poor performance
a weak performance
an unacceptable performance
a negative performance
an inadequate performance
a horrendous performance
a poor condition
a deteriorated condition
a shabby condition
a sub-par condition
a shoddy condition
a pitiful condition
poor nutrition
unbalanced nutrition
improper nutrition
deficient nutrition
unhealthy nutrition
insufficient nutrition
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of poor
Job Corps, established in 1964, provides education and vocational training to disadvantaged youth but has been criticized by the Labor Department for poor outcomes and safety issues.
—
Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025
Programs like food aid for poor children, health care for seniors, and subsidies for day-to-day needs are in the balance.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 5 June 2025
Most cited poor digital offerings or a lack of services and products.
—Robert Frank, CNBC, 5 June 2025
The risk extends even to children due to increasing rates of childhood obesity and poor dietary habits.20
As a result, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that healthy adults have their lipids checked every four to six years.
—Md Published, Verywell Health, 5 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for poor
Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025
Programs like food aid for poor children, health care for seniors, and subsidies for day-to-day needs are in the balance.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 5 June 2025
Most cited poor digital offerings or a lack of services and products.
—Robert Frank, CNBC, 5 June 2025
The risk extends even to children due to increasing rates of childhood obesity and poor dietary habits.20
As a result, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that healthy adults have their lipids checked every four to six years.
—Md Published, Verywell Health, 5 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for poor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poor
Adjective
-
During campaign events, Lee, who grew up in an impoverished farming household and toiled in factories as a child, spoke from behind bullet-proof glass to crowds, which were surveyed by rooftop police snipers.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
4 June 2025
-
Curtis’ extraordinary talent is first recognized in kindergarten, when a charitable foundation donates instruments to his impoverished public school.—
Joan Gaylord,
Christian Science Monitor,
29 May 2025
Adjective
-
The location is on federal land just north of the U.S.-Mexico border along a desolate stretch of the Sonoran Desert about 72 miles south-southwest of Tucson.—
Doha Madani,
NBC news,
5 May 2025
-
Even the trailers for Superman have echos of the Man of Steel and Batman v Superman trailers, including starting with Superman falling out of the sky into a desolate Arctic area.—
Mark Hughes,
Forbes.com,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
In a job market where interviews are scarce and searches can stretch for months, Marino-Briggs was struck by how often candidates arrived unprepared.—
Julia Korn,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2025
-
In a year where momentum is scarce, NASCAR’s 600-mile test provides a chance to put some distance between the good and the great.—
Shane Connuck,
Charlotte Observer,
23 May 2025
Adjective
-
And sometimes the soldiers can do things which are totally unacceptable and can be called crimes.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
6 June 2025
-
Tools that pose an unacceptable threat to rights or safety are banned outright.—
Dan Fitzpatrick,
Forbes.com,
5 June 2025
Adjective
-
Kids these days have attention spans crushed under the terrible weight of TikTok and Instgram.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
-
My heart goes out to the victims of this terrible tragedy, and the Great People of Boulder, Colorado!—
Dan Mangan,
CNBC,
2 June 2025
Adjective
-
The pitiful performance by the Texas Rangers against the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2016 divisional round.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 May 2025
-
But the rates were pitiful: $9.87 for a 13-mile trip, $19.97 for a 25-mile trip and so on.—
Eli Tan,
New York Times,
14 May 2025
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, countless others who chased hot tips and quick wins are broke, both financially and emotionally.—
Shane Enete,
Forbes.com,
9 May 2025
-
Image Set in Brooklyn in the summer of 2022, the action takes place in the apartment of Emmy, a playwright freshly cognizant of the danger of being too broke to afford health insurance.—
Laura Collins-Hughes,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The festival was deliberately planned for the barren weeks in June after college students left and before the summer concert and festival season kicked in.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
25 May 2025
-
The Bureau’s new research station on Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano, with its high altitude and barren landscape, would prove to be the ideal collection spot.—
Ashley Braun,
Smithsonian Magazine,
19 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Poor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poor. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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