Penniless

/ˈpɛ.nɪ.ləs/ · adjective

Meaning

(figuratively) Lacking even the smallest amount of money..

Definitions by Sense

1. (figuratively) Lacking even the smallest amount of money.
2. (numismatics, banking) Of a country's system of money, abstaining from the use of penny coins, despite having fully decimalized currency, by means of rounding of cash transactions (but not necessarily of cashless ones).

Example Sentences

In societies without national insurance of any kind, almshouses are the last refuge of penniless people.

In a functioning digital economy, being cashless is far different from being penniless, because cash is merely one form of money; but some preppers hoard gold in case the system gets destroyed and cashlessness suddenly becomes pennilessness.

A dollar and a quarter seems a small sum, but if you are absolutely penniless it might as well be a thousand.

This time was most dreadful for Lilian. Thrown on her own resources and almost penniless, she maintained herself and paid the rent of a wretched room near the hospital by working as a charwoman, sempstress, anything. In a moment she had dropped to the level of a casual labourer.

Canada became a penniless country in 2013 simply by rounding its cash transactions to the nearest nickel but otherwise not changing anything.

Synonyms for penniless

Antonyms for penniless

Related Words

Word Forms

• pennyless

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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