ENGLISH
REFERENCE

impoverished

adj.
C1 Advanced US //ˌɪmˈpɑvɹɪʃt// UK //ɪmpˈɒvəɹɪʃt// im·pov·er·ished

adj. describing a person, place, or group that is extremely poor. It can also describe something that has lost its quality or strength.

adj. reduced to a state of extreme poverty; lacking in necessary resources or qualities. Often used to describe soil or environments that have been depleted of nutrients.


SIMPLE

The charity provides clean water to impoverished villages.

CONTEXTUAL

Decades of industrial decline left the once-thriving city impoverished and struggling to maintain basic infrastructure.

COMPLEX

The intensive farming techniques used throughout the twentieth century eventually resulted in impoverished soil that required heavy chemical intervention to remain productive.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Usage

Typically used as a participial adjective; often appears before a noun or after a linking verb like 'become' or 'remain'.

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