poor : Idioms & Phrases

Index

Guardians of the poor

  • the members of a board appointed or elected to care for the relief of the poor within a township, or district.
Webster 1913

land-poor

Land"-poor` adjective
Definitions
  1. Pecuniarily embarrassed through owning much unprofitable land. Colloq.
Webster 1913

poor box

  • noun box for collecting alms, especially one in a church
    mite box; alms box.
WordNet

poor boy

  • noun a large sandwich made of a long crusty roll split lengthwise and filled with meats and cheese (and tomato and onion and lettuce and condiments); different names are used in different sections of the United States
    wedge; bomber; hero; sub; hero sandwich; submarine; zep; Cuban sandwich; grinder; torpedo; hoagie; Italian sandwich; hoagy; submarine sandwich.
WordNet

poor devil

  • noun someone you feel sorry for
    wretch.
WordNet

poor fish

  • noun a person who is not very bright
    pillock; dullard; pudding head; stupe; stupid; pudden-head; stupid person; dolt.
    • The economy, stupid!
WordNet

Poor law

  • noun a law providing support for the poor
WordNet
  • a law providing for, or regulating, the relief or support of the poor.
Webster 1913

poor man's orchid

  • noun any plant of the genus Schizanthus having finely divided leaves and showy variegated flowers
    butterfly flower; schizanthus.
WordNet

poor man's pulse

  • noun twining herb of Old World tropics cultivated in India for food and fodder; sometimes placed in genus Dolichos
    horse grain; horse gram; Dolichos biflorus; Macrotyloma uniflorum.
WordNet

Poor man's treacle

  • (Bot.), garlic; so called because it was thought to be an antidote to animal poison. Eng Dr. Prior.
Webster 1913

Poor man's weatherglass

  • noun herb with scarlet or white or purple blossoms that close at approach of rainy weather
    Anagallis arvensis; red pimpernel; scarlet pimpernel.
WordNet
  • (Bot.), the red-flowered pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis), which opens its blossoms only in fair weather.
Webster 1913

poor people

  • noun people without possessions or wealth (considered as a group)
    poor.
    • the urban poor need assistance
WordNet

poor person

  • noun a person with few or no possessions
    have-not.
WordNet

Poor rate

  • an assessment or tax, as in an English parish, for the relief or support of the poor.
Webster 1913

poor rates

  • noun a local tax for the relief of the poor
WordNet

Poor soldier

  • (Zoöl.), the friar bird.
Webster 1913

poor speller

  • noun someone who spells words
    speller; good speller.
WordNet

poor white trash

  • noun (slang) an offensive term for White people who are impoverished
    white trash.
WordNet

poor-john

Poor"-john` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) A small European fish, similar to the cod, but of inferior quality.
    Poor-john and apple pies are all our fare. Sir J. Harrington.
Webster 1913

poor-spirited

  • adjective satellite lacking in courage and manly strength and resolution; contemptibly fearful
    pusillanimous; unmanly.
WordNet
Poor"-spir`it*ed adjective
Definitions
  1. Of a mean spirit; cowardly; base. -- Poor"-spir`it*ed*ness, n.
Webster 1913

poor-will

Poor"-will` noun
Etymology
So called in imitation of its note.
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) A bird of the Western United States (Phalænoptilus Nutalli) allied to the whip-poor-will.
Webster 1913

poor-willie

Poor"-wil`lie noun
Etymology
So called in imitation of its note.
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) The bar-tailed godwit. Prov. Eng.
Webster 1913

standard and poor's

  • noun a broadly based stock market index
    Standard and Poor's.
WordNet

standard and poor's index

  • noun a broadly based stock market index
    Standard and Poor's.
WordNet

The poor

  • 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.
Webster 1913

whip-poor-will

Whip"-poor-will` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) An American bird (Antrostomus vociferus) allied to the nighthawk and goatsucker; -- so called in imitation of the peculiar notes which it utters in the evening. Written also whippowil.
Webster 1913