dirt poor

adjective

1. lacking nearly all material means or resources for living.

dirt-poor

adjective

1. extremely poor

Word History and Origins

Origin of dirt poor¹

An Americanism dating back to 1935–40

Example Sentences

“We were dirt poor so I couldn’t afford to go to the movies often,” he told the AP in 1998.

From Washington Times

“We were dirt poor so I couldn’t afford to go to the movies too often, but I went whenever I could and focused in on movies as if they were more important than anything in life.”

From Los Angeles Times

“We were dirt poor so I couldn’t afford to go to the movies often,” he told the AP in 1998.

From Seattle Times

He had grown up dirt poor in what is now South Korea, then occupied by Japan.

From Science Magazine

"Patients who were put in there were dirt poor," said Clare Blackmore, one of the volunteers.

From BBC

Related Words

• bankrupt
• exhausted
• impoverished
• indigent
• insolvent
• needy
• penniless
• poor
• poverty-stricken
• strapped