poverty line
Minimum income standard
The poverty line is the minimum income level below which a person or household is officially considered poor.
Governments set poverty lines to determine eligibility for assistance programs and to measure economic hardship: A family of four living below the poverty line qualifies for food stamps.
The threshold varies by country and household size.
Minimal means of living
- hand-to-mouthConsuming resources immediately
- food insecurityUncertain access to adequate meals
- hungerNeed for nourishment
- malnutritionDisease from dietary inadequacy
homelessness · shelter · deprivation · hardship · struggling · scarcity · insufficiency · want
Measurable difference between things
- socioeconomicRelating to income and status
- wealth gapEconomic inequality measure
- underclassLowest socioeconomic group
- marginalizedPushed to society's edges
disadvantaged · underprivileged · have-nots · economic divide · social stratification · income inequality · class divide
Minimal means of living
- benchmarkStandard for comparison
- eligibilityState of meeting criteria
- federal guidelinesGovernment-issued policy directives
- basic needsRequirements for survival
standard of living · welfare · food stamps · social assistance · government aid · unemployment benefits · means test · qualification
subsistence
Minimal means of living
- hand-to-mouthConsuming resources immediately
- food insecurityUncertain access to adequate meals
- hungerNeed for nourishment
malnutrition · homelessness · shelter · deprivation · hardship · struggling · scarcity · insufficiency · want · privation
disparity
Measurable difference between things
- socioeconomicRelating to income and status
- wealth gapEconomic inequality measure
- underclassLowest socioeconomic group
marginalized · disadvantaged · underprivileged · have-nots · economic divide · social stratification · income inequality · class divide
subsistence
Minimal means of living
- benchmarkStandard for comparison
- eligibilityState of meeting criteria
- federal guidelinesGovernment-issued policy directives
basic needs · standard of living · welfare · food stamps · social assistance · government aid · unemployment benefits · means test · qualification · census
- povertydestitution, penniless, needy, indigent, neediness
- living conditionshousing, income, employment, healthcare access, education access
- inequalitywealth gap, income gap, disparity, wage gap, income disparity
- social classupper class, middle class, lower class, working class, social class
- wealth statusrich, wealthy, affluent, middle-class, upper class
- Economic Fairnessequal pay, fair wages, fair pay, pay equity, wage gap
line, poor, poverty, destitute, penury, impoverished, poverty-stricken, impoverishment