Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A poorhouse.
- noun Chiefly British A home for the poor that is maintained by private charity.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A house appropriated for the use of the poor who are supported by the public or by a revenue derived from private endowment; a poor-house.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun A house appropriated for the use of the poor; a poorhouse.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A building of
residence for the poor, sick or elderly of aparish . Originally founded by theChurch . Usually a charity relying ondonations for funding.
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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Opened in 1736, the almshouse was a homeless shelter, jail, and workhouse rolled into one.
Under City Hall Park 2000
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Younger inmates tended to remain for only short periods of time; for them the almshouse was a temporary refuge in times of crisis or unemployment.
The Mad Among Us Gerald N. Grob 1994
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Younger inmates tended to remain for only short periods of time; for them the almshouse was a temporary refuge in times of crisis or unemployment.
The Mad Among Us Gerald N. Grob 1994
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The almshouse, which is now called by various names, the county home, the county infirmary, etc., ceased to be the repository for all types of delinquents, and for children, and became an institution primarily for the care of the aged and infirm.
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The almshouse was the commonest form of relief, and even recently, it has been described as the fundamental institution of American poor relief.
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Berks historian George M. M.iser IX said the records show the almshouse was a safety net for the poor, the mentally ill and those rendered helpless by old age.
Berks county news 2009
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He left a financial legacy which he hoped would be used to support less fortunate artists, planning and designing an almshouse for them in Twickenham.
A legacy Turner would have approved of | Charles Saatchi 2012
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Hals may well have been able to imagine this feeling, for although he never lived in the almshouse, he was very poor in his final years, and may have considered entering the home.
David Galenson: Visiting the Oldest Dutch Master: The Frans Hals Museum David Galenson 2011
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Both made in 1664, when Hals was 81 or 82, one portrays the regents of Haarlem's old men's almshouse, the other the regentesses.
David Galenson: Visiting the Oldest Dutch Master: The Frans Hals Museum David Galenson 2011
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Because of the length of the original rosary, it became customary to pay someone, usually a resident of an almshouse, to recite the prayers.
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