1
as in poor
lacking money or material possessions
the widespread hope that the lottery's record-setting jackpot is won by an impoverished family
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
an impoverished field that over the years had been overgrazed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pauperized
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
2
as in depleted
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of impoverished
Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 20 July 2025
Miss Lonelyhearts—who is actually a man—is an advice columnist receiving letters from people who are impoverished, in despair, and surrounded by an atmosphere of moral depravity and incipient fascism.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 16 July 2025
Some of the city's most impoverished communities also wrestle with the highest rates of afflictions like heart disease, and research suggests more tree canopy and green spaces can reduce these risks, in addition to benefiting stress levels and general quality of life.
—Connor Giffin, The Courier-Journal, 3 July 2025
Will parts of Norway look like Nauru, a formerly lush tropical paradise stripped of its phosphate rock, and now a barren, impoverished cautionary tale?
—Suwanna Gauntlett Upjohn, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for impoverished
Verb
Perhaps, Sophie suggests, Margo sees the tryst as a second chance, a redo of her lonely and impoverished high school years.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 20 July 2025
Miss Lonelyhearts—who is actually a man—is an advice columnist receiving letters from people who are impoverished, in despair, and surrounded by an atmosphere of moral depravity and incipient fascism.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 16 July 2025
Some of the city's most impoverished communities also wrestle with the highest rates of afflictions like heart disease, and research suggests more tree canopy and green spaces can reduce these risks, in addition to benefiting stress levels and general quality of life.
—Connor Giffin, The Courier-Journal, 3 July 2025
Will parts of Norway look like Nauru, a formerly lush tropical paradise stripped of its phosphate rock, and now a barren, impoverished cautionary tale?
—Suwanna Gauntlett Upjohn, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for impoverished
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impoverished
Adjective
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Additionally, over-saturating with water is a poor choice for these floors.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
16 Aug. 2025
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Specifically, poor capital allocation decisions have destroyed significant value.—
Kenneth Squire,
CNBC,
16 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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In Namibia, Shipwreck Lodge in the desolate Skeleton Coast National Park and the secluded Hoanib Valley Camp are oases of luxury in otherworldly settings.—
Erina Pinar,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Aug. 2025
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The Emperor Titus attempted but failed to revive Pompeii and its sibling town Herculaneum soon after the catastrophe, leaving the desolate region largely abandoned until its rediscovery in 1748.—
Andrew Paul Aug 7,
Popular Science,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The bodies of some of the dead whales have appeared depleted and malnourished, leading some scientists to believe the problem could be a lack of food.—
Melody Petersen,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Apr. 2025
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But their pitching rotation is depleted, largely due to a few injuries, so the Cubs may look for a trade partner to help boost the pitching staff.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Campaigning is expensive, so if the people you are elected to represent are going broke, special interest groups fill the fiscal void.—
Christopher Eric Bouchat,
Baltimore Sun,
29 July 2025
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All the while Lucy finds herself in a love triangle torn between a wealthy finance man and a broke, aspiring actor.—
Yola Robert,
Forbes.com,
26 July 2025
Adjective
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What might more readily bring about a crisis of identity than the physical alteration of the body, the change from bearer of life to barren woman?—
Hillary Kelly,
The Atlantic,
5 Aug. 2025
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Most of those barren years came before a current regime that has taken English cricket to new highs of attacking intent.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
Verb
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And then in Joker 2, some people complained that the movie was ruined by the images on the screen and the sounds that accompanied them.—
Lexy Perez,
The Hollywood Reporter,
6 Jan. 2025
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Believing their beloved team already ruined mock drafting for the next two months, New York Giants fans probably hope for a loss against a Philadelphia Eagles team expected to rest starters Sunday.—
Jeff Howe,
The Athletic,
4 Jan. 2025
Verb
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He was hurt, he was exhausted and knew very well the odds of his Pittsburgh Penguins qualifying for the postseason were minimal at best.—
Josh Yohe,
The Athletic,
25 Mar. 2025
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Fourteen years of war have left the country desolate, and its people exhausted; millions have been displaced or were forced to become refugees.—
Raghed Waked & Justin Salhani,
The Dial,
25 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Directed by Paul Schrader with a script by Bret Easton Ellis, this spiritually bleak L.A. drama features Lohan’s most daring performance, and probably the only one that manages to break completely with her childhood and adolescent roles.—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
9 Aug. 2025
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The situation is bleak enough that, even if aid increases rapidly in the coming weeks, deaths from starvation are almost certain to rise.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
5 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Impoverished.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impoverished. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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