poorhouse

[ poor-hous ]

noun

, plural poor·hous·es [poor, -hou-ziz].

1. (formerly) an institution in which paupers were maintained at public expense.

poorhouse

/ ˈpɔː-; ˈpʊəˌhaʊs /

noun

1. (formerly) a publicly maintained institution offering accommodation to the poor

Word History and Origins

Origin of poorhouse¹

First recorded in 1735–45; poor + house

Example Sentences

Their names were lost, and not much about their lives was known beyond the barest facts: an old age spent in the poorhouse, a problem with cavities.

From New York Times

When Marla Carter visits her mother-in-law at a nursing home in Owensboro, Kentucky, the scene feels more 19th-century poorhouse than modern-day America.

From Seattle Times

When Marla Carter visits her mother-in-law at a nursing home in Owensboro, Kentucky, the scene feels more 19th-century poorhouse than modern-day America.

From Seattle Times

Because no matter what distance I travel from childhood, I still feel one foot in the poorhouse.

From New York Times

I recently read Dorothea Dix’s 1843 report on her investigation into the care of mentally ill people in poorhouses and prisons in Massachusetts.

From Washington Post