Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
impoverish
4 dictionary results for: Impoverish
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
im·pov·er·ish       [im-pov-er-ish, -pov-rish] Pronunciation Key
–verb (used with object)
1.to reduce to poverty: a country impoverished by war.
2.to make poor in quality, productiveness, etc.; exhaust the strength or richness of: Bad farming practices impoverished the soil.
[Origin: 1400–50; late ME empoverishen < MF empovriss- (long s. of empovrir), equiv. to em- em-1 + povre poor + -iss -ish2]

—Related forms
im·pov·er·ish·er, noun
im·pov·er·ish·ment, noun

—Synonyms 2. deplete, drain; weaken, enervate, fatigue, cripple.
—Antonyms 1, 2. enrich.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
im·pov·er·ish       (ĭm-pŏv'ər-ĭsh, -pŏv'rĭsh)  Pronunciation Key 
tr.v.   im·pov·er·ished, im·pov·er·ish·ing, im·pov·er·ish·es
  1. To reduce to poverty; make poor.
  2. To deprive of natural richness or strength: impoverish the soil by overuse. See Synonyms at deplete.


[Middle English empoverishen, from Old French empovrir, empovriss- : en-, causative pref.; see en-1 + povre, poor (from Latin pauper; see pauper).]

im·pov'er·ish·ment n.
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
impoverish

verb
1. make poor [ant: enrich] 
2. take away [syn: deprive] [ant: enrich] 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Impoverish

Im*pov"er*ish\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Impoverished; p. pr. & vb. n. Impoverishing.] [OF. empovrir; pref. em- (L. in) + povre poor, F. pauvre; cf. OF. apovrir, F. appauvrir, where the prefix is a-, L. ad. Cf. Empoverish, and see Poor, and -ish.]

1. To make poor; to reduce to poverty or indigence; as, misfortune and disease impoverish families.

2. To exhaust the strength, richness, or fertility of; to make sterile; as, to impoverish land.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Share This:Share This: digg.comShare This: ma.gnolia.comShare This: www.stumbleupon.comShare This: del.icio.usShare This: FacebookShare This: favorites.live.comShare This: www.technorati.comShare This: furl.netShare This: myweb2.search.yahoo.comShare This: www.google.com