destitute
Americanadjective
-
without means of subsistence; lacking food, clothing, and shelter.
- Synonyms:
- impoverished, penniless, necessitous, indigent, poor, needy
- Antonyms:
- affluent
-
deprived of, devoid of, or lacking (often followed byof ).
destitute of children.
- Synonyms:
- deficient
verb (used with object)
-
to leave destitute.
adjective
-
lacking the means of subsistence; totally impoverished
-
completely lacking; deprived or bereft (of)
destitute of words
-
obsolete abandoned or deserted
Other Word Forms
- destitutely adverb
- destituteness noun
- predestitute adjective
- undestitute adjective
Etymology
Origin of destitute
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin dēstitūtus (past participle of dēstituere to abandon, deprive of support), equivalent to dē- de- + stit- place, put (combining form of statuere; statute ) + -ū- thematic vowel + -tus past participle suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Or maybe you worry that if the attorney exploits your relative and leaves them destitute, the rightful heirs will inherit little.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 3, 2026
The Dominican nuns who run the kitchen prepare food for about 80 elderly or destitute people -- growing numbers of Cubans are forced to rummage through garbage bins for food -- each day.
From Barron's • Feb. 11, 2026
Modi, as the Italian was affectionately called, was urbane, well-groomed and handsome, while Soutine was destitute, sickly and notoriously unwashed.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
Steve Smith, from refugee charity Care4Calais, told the BBC: "In terms of people seeking asylum, the government has a duty, under the Refugee Convention, to house those who would be otherwise destitute."
From BBC • Nov. 8, 2025
Coal mining companies failed, and thousands of miners found themselves out of work and their families destitute.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.