the destitute
noun
: people who are extremely poor : needy people
The charity provides food and clothing for the destitute.
Examples of the destitute in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
This was a man who had lengthy experience in surviving far from luxuriant conditions, firstly from his time living with the destitute of Paris and London as part of his first successful non-fiction volume and secondly as a fighter for the Republican cause in the Spanish Civil War.
—
Rob Crossan, JSTOR Daily, 15 Nov. 2024
Its mission is to help the poor, the imprisoned, the destitute, the hungry, the aged, and victims of disaster locally, nationally, and internationally.
—Encinitas Advocate, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Jan. 2024
The Roman Catholic nun, who dedicated her life to caring for the destitute in India, officially became Saint Teresa of Calcutta nearly 20 years after her death on Sept. 5, 1997.
—The Arizona Republic, 4 Sep. 2024
The earmark of a great nation is how its people treat the destitute or the underprivileged who began life in figurative chains.
—Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 20 July 2024
In the 1990s, tennis-world stars such as Billie Jean King and journalist Bud Collins raised money for the destitute Gibson, but there wasn’t much oversight.
—Patrick Sauer, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2023
But even by that standard, the coronavirus’s outsize impact on the destitute and vulnerable is striking.
—Robert Malley, Foreign Affairs, 8 June 2020
Its mission is to help the poor, the imprisoned, the destitute, the hungry, the aged and victims of disaster.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2022
The flood of Tunisian émigrés spans socioeconomic classes, with professionals, the working class and the destitute represented among those fleeing, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushes up the price of food and gas, and the government pulls back from subsidizing basic items such as sugar and rice.
—Chao Deng, WSJ, 14 Dec. 2022
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.
Rob Crossan, JSTOR Daily, 15 Nov. 2024
Its mission is to help the poor, the imprisoned, the destitute, the hungry, the aged, and victims of disaster locally, nationally, and internationally.
—Encinitas Advocate, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Jan. 2024
The Roman Catholic nun, who dedicated her life to caring for the destitute in India, officially became Saint Teresa of Calcutta nearly 20 years after her death on Sept. 5, 1997.
—The Arizona Republic, 4 Sep. 2024
The earmark of a great nation is how its people treat the destitute or the underprivileged who began life in figurative chains.
—Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 20 July 2024
In the 1990s, tennis-world stars such as Billie Jean King and journalist Bud Collins raised money for the destitute Gibson, but there wasn’t much oversight.
—Patrick Sauer, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2023
But even by that standard, the coronavirus’s outsize impact on the destitute and vulnerable is striking.
—Robert Malley, Foreign Affairs, 8 June 2020
Its mission is to help the poor, the imprisoned, the destitute, the hungry, the aged and victims of disaster.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2022
The flood of Tunisian émigrés spans socioeconomic classes, with professionals, the working class and the destitute represented among those fleeing, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushes up the price of food and gas, and the government pulls back from subsidizing basic items such as sugar and rice.
—Chao Deng, WSJ, 14 Dec. 2022
Dictionary Entries Near the destitute
Cite this Entry
“The destitute.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20destitute. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share