Destitute
Lacking the basic necessities of life; extremely poor.
adjectiveDestitute
Lacking the basic necessities of life; extremely poor.
adjectiveImagine This
Institutes are big companies or organizations, usually owning a lot of assets (i.e., money). De_institute means the opposite, which is the lack of basic necessities of life.
Sounds Like
DES-ti-toot
Looks Like
destitute
Remember This
Destitute is often used with 'of' (destitute of something) and refers to people or situations, not objects that are scarce by choice. The noun form is destitution.
Other Forms
Note
Destitute describes a state of severe poverty (not just temporary lack). The common noun is destitution. It is typically used of people or households, and can be followed by 'of' (destitute of food, shelter, etc.).
Study Deeper
- After losing his job and savings, he became destitute and sought help from a charity.
- The destitute population crowded the city’s shelters and soup kitchens.
From Latin destituere, de- 'away' + statuere 'to place, set' (to abandon or forsake). In English, it retained the sense of lacking the means of subsistence.
DE+SIT+TUDE: Think of destitute as 'without a substitute' for life’s essentials; being destitute means you have no replacement for basic needs.
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Similar Words
Related words and words with the same part of speech.
Indigence
nounExtreme poverty or destitution; the state of lacking the basic resources needed for living.
Penury
nounExtreme poverty; the state of lacking the basic necessities of life such as food, shelter, and clothing.
Abstruse
adjectiveDifficult to understand; obscure or highly complex.
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adjectiveHappening by chance or without deliberate planning; not intended. In music, it is also a noun for a symbol that temporarily alters a pitch.
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adjectiveSharp or biting in tone or taste; caustic or mordant in manner.
Acquiescent
adjectiveReady to agree or approve without protest; compliant.