noun
pauper
PAW-puh
noun
1
A person who is very poor, especially one relying on charity or public assistance.
"He died a pauper after losing his fortune in the crash."
"The Victorian workhouse system was built to deal with paupers."
How to Use Pauper
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishSomeone with no money at all, dependent on others or the state.
When to use it
Sounds old-fashioned or literary today; "poor person" or "someone in poverty" is the everyday modern phrasing.
Common pairings
die a pauper
pauper's grave
Word Forms
paupered past tense, paupers plural, paupers singular
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He died a _____ after losing his fortune in the crash.
Etymology
A direct borrowing from Latin pauper, meaning "poor" — the same root that gives us "poverty" and "impoverish."