Emily Dickinson Lexicon

POOR, a. [L. pauper; Fr. pauvre; Sp. pobre; It. povero; Arm. paour; Norm. pour, power.]

1. Wholly destitute of property, or not having property sufficient for a comfortable subsistence; needy. It is often synonymous with indigent, and with necessitous, denoting extreme want; it is also applied to persons who are not entirely destitute of property, but are not rich; as, a poor man or woman; poor people.
2. In law, so destitute of property as to be entitled to maintenance from the public.
3. Destitute of strength, beauty or dignity; barren; mean; jejune; as, a poor composition; a poor essay; a poor discourse.
4. Destitute of value, worth or importance; of little use; trifling. That I have wronged no man, will be a poor plea or apology at the last day. – Calamy.
5. Paltry; mean; of little value; as, a poor coat; a poor house.
6. Destitute of fertility; barren; exhausted; as, poor land. The ground is become poor.
7. Of little worth; unimportant; as, in my poor opinion. – Swift.
8. Unhappy; pitiable. Vex'd sailors curse the rain / For which poor shepherds pray'd in vain. – Waller.
9. Mean; depressed; low; dejected; destitute of spirit. A soothsayer made Antonius believe that his genius, which was otherwise brave, was, in the presence of Octavianus, poor and cowardly. – Bacon.
10. Lean; emaciated; as, a poor horse. The ox is poor.
11. Small, or of a bad quality; as, a poor crop; a poor harvest.
12. Uncomfortable; restless; ill. The patient has had a poor night.
13. Destitute of saving grace. – Rev. iii.
14. In general, wanting good qualities, or the qualities which render a thing valuable, excellent, proper, or sufficient for its purpose; as, a poor pen; a poor ship; a poor carriage; poor fruit; poor bread; poor wine, &c.
15. A word of tenderness or pity; dear. Poor, little, pretty, fluttering thing. – Prior.
16. A word of slight contempt; wretched. The poor monk never saw many of the decrees and councils he had occasion to use. – Baker.
17. The poor, collectively, used as a noun; those who are destitute of property; the indigent; the needy; in a legal sense, those who depend on charity or maintenance by the public. I have observed the more public provisions are made for the poor, the less they provide for themselves. – Franklin. Poor in spirit, in a Scriptural sense, humble; contrite; abased in one's own sight by a sense of guilt. – Matth. v.