destitution
UK /dɛstɪˈtjuːʃən/ · US /dɛstɪˈtuːʃən/ noun
Forms destitutions
- noun (obsolete) The action of deserting or abandoning.
- noun (now rare) Discharge from office; dismissal.
- noun The condition of lacking something.
- noun An extreme state of poverty, in which a person is almost completely lacking in resources or means of support.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Old French destitution, from Latin dēstitūtiō (“abandoning”), from dēstituō.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The state of being deprived of anything; the state or condition of being destitute, needy, or without resources; deficiency; lack; extreme poverty; utter want; as, the inundation caused general destitution.
Etymology [L. destitutio a forsaking.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “destitution”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details