as in impoverished
lacking money or material possessions
went from being a penniless girl to owner of her own restaurant
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of penniless
Along with invisible, the assistant can also be penniless, powerless and a vulnerable target.
—
Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2024
This time, inspiration came from English writer H.G. Wells, whose sci-fi novel The Invisible Man — about a penniless researcher whose experiments in invisibility unlock a sadistic side to his personality — has become one of the all-time genre greats.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 18 Oct. 2024
Venezuela’s generals would rather stay penniless but in power than step down and end up imprisoned.
—Laura Gamboa Gutiérrez, Foreign Affairs, 30 May 2019
About 18 months after finding over a million dollars in gold, they’re left penniless.
—Dina Kaur, The Arizona Republic, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for penniless 
Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2024
This time, inspiration came from English writer H.G. Wells, whose sci-fi novel The Invisible Man — about a penniless researcher whose experiments in invisibility unlock a sadistic side to his personality — has become one of the all-time genre greats.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 18 Oct. 2024
Venezuela’s generals would rather stay penniless but in power than step down and end up imprisoned.
—Laura Gamboa Gutiérrez, Foreign Affairs, 30 May 2019
About 18 months after finding over a million dollars in gold, they’re left penniless.
—Dina Kaur, The Arizona Republic, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for penniless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for penniless
Adjective
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Like De Fontenay’s debut feature Mobile Homes, which followed an impoverished family scraping by in upstate New York, Sukkwan Island has a powerful immersive quality that makes up for some of its dramatic shortcomings, especially dialogue that can feel either stilted or too on-the-nose.—
Jordan Mintzer,
The Hollywood Reporter,
25 Jan. 2025
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The states that voted for Trump also tend to be more dependent on those federal funds and have more impoverished areas.—
Peter Greene,
Forbes,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Lopetegui was eventually sacked on January 8, having failed to fix West Ham’s poor form.—
Roshane Thomas,
The Athletic,
5 Feb. 2025
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Though Osbourne had a farewell tour set to begin in 2023, he was forced to cancel the shows due to poor health.—
Rosa Rahimi,
CNN,
5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Seeger invites the broke musician to stay on his couch and into the heart of his family and takes him under his wing.—
Lee Sharrock,
Forbes,
19 Jan. 2025
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About half of participants lost money, and 1 in 6 went broke.—
Ryan Ermey,
CNBC,
13 Jan. 2025
Articles Related to penniless
Thesaurus Entries Near penniless
Cite this Entry
“Penniless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penniless. Accessed 9 Feb. 2025.
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