Definition of: poor

(pr) adjective
1. Lacking means of comfortable subsistence; indigent; needy.
2. Lacking in good qualities, or the qualities that render a thing valuable; specifically, lacking in abundance or quality; scanty: a poor crop; of inferior workmanship or quality: a poor watch; deficient in vigor; feeble: poor health; lean; thin; feeble from ill feeding: That animal is poor; lacking in fertility; sterile: poor soil.
3. Wanting in strength or spirit; cowardly.
4. Devoid of elegance or refinements; uncomfortable: poor surroundings.
5. Deserving of pity; unhappy; wretched: the poor dog.
6. Devoid of merit; unsatisfactory: a very poor speaker. See synonyms under BAD¹, BASE², HUMBLE, MEAGER, SCANTY. [<OF povre <L pauper. Doublet of PAUPER.]
—poor′ness noun