as in impoverished
lacking money or material possessions
poverty-stricken immigrants struggling to make ends meet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of poverty-stricken
During and after the Great Depression, the Tennessee Valley Authority built dozens of hydroelectric dams, bringing electricity and flood control to the most remote and poverty-stricken hollows of Appalachia.
—
Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 29 June 2025
That’s a long way from living in motels and stealing steaks from grocery stores during his more humble days of being poverty-stricken.
—Karu F. Daniels, New York Daily News, 28 Feb. 2025
At the time, Whitechapel was poverty-stricken and overcrowded, with over 76,000 people populating its dilapidated avenues and dwellings.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 18 Jan. 2024
Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 29 June 2025
That’s a long way from living in motels and stealing steaks from grocery stores during his more humble days of being poverty-stricken.
—Karu F. Daniels, New York Daily News, 28 Feb. 2025
At the time, Whitechapel was poverty-stricken and overcrowded, with over 76,000 people populating its dilapidated avenues and dwellings.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 18 Jan. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poverty-stricken
Adjective
-
The film, which world premiered in the Berlinale’s Perspectives sidebar, follows an impoverished but determined family put to test when the father, who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, is accused of murder.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
23 Oct. 2025
-
Sanctions have crippled the government’s primary source of revenue, oil exports, limiting the state’s ability to provide for millions of impoverished Iranians through social safety nets.—
Leila Gharagozlou,
CNN Money,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The apology came after a sustained campaign by historians and activists who argued that the victims were persecuted for being poor, vulnerable, or simply different.—
James Frater,
CNN Money,
31 Oct. 2025
-
As has Mark Flekken, the new goalkeeper, who moved from Brentford and is fortunate not to have lost his place due to poor form.—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Poverty-stricken.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poverty-stricken. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share