poorhouse

noun

poor·​house ˈpu̇r-ˌhau̇s How to pronounce poorhouse (audio)
ˈpȯr-
: a place maintained at public expense to house needy or dependent persons

Examples of poorhouse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Brains have surfaced from northern European peat bogs, Andean mountaintops, shipwrecks, desert tombs and Victorian poorhouses. Katie Hunt, CNN, 25 Mar. 2024 Diedrichs left town by 1863, and was said to have died years later in a New York poorhouse. Genevieve Redsten, Journal Sentinel, 9 June 2023 One 1909 report describes a Virginia poorhouse warden who stopped an older woman from wandering by anchoring her with a twenty-eight-pound ball and chain. Marion Renault, The New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2022 When Marla Carter visits her mother-in-law at a nursing home in Owensboro, Kentucky, the scene feels more 19th-century poorhouse than modern-day America. Matt Sedensky, Chicago Tribune, 15 Mar. 2023 See all Example Sentences for poorhouse 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'poorhouse.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1579, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of poorhouse was circa 1579

Dictionary Entries Near poorhouse

Cite this Entry

“Poorhouse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poorhouse. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.

Kids Definition

poorhouse

noun
poor·​house ˈpu̇(ə-)r-ˌhau̇s How to pronounce poorhouse (audio)
ˈpō(ə)r-
: a place maintained at public expense to house poor people
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