beggar

== English == === Alternative forms === begger (obsolete) === Etymology === From Middle English beggere, beggare, beggar (“beggar”), from Middle English beggen (“to beg”), equivalent to beg +‎ -ar. Alternative etymology derives Middle English beggere, beggare, beggar from Old French begart, originally a member of the Beghards, a lay brotherhood of mendicants in the Low Countries, from Middle Dutch beggaert (“mendicant”), with pejorative suffix (see -ard); the order is said to be named after the priest Lambert le Bègue of Liège (French for “Lambert the Stammerer”). === Pronunciation === (General American) IPA(key): /ˈbɛɡɚ/ (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈbɛɡə/ Rhymes: -ɛɡə(ɹ) Hyphenation: beg‧gar === Noun === beggar (plural beggars) A person who begs. Synonyms: mendicant, panhandler, schnorrer, spanger, truant; see also Thesaurus:beggar A person suffering from extreme poverty. Synonyms: palliard, pauper, vagabond; see also Thesaurus:pauper (colloquial, sometimes endearing) A mean or wretched person; a scoundrel. Synonyms: hellraiser, rascal, scapegrace; see also Thesaurus:troublemaker, Thesaurus:villain (UK) A minced oath for bugger. (card games) the last placer in Tycoon Antonym: tycoon ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Verb === beggar (third-person singular simple present beggars, present participle beggaring, simple past and past participle beggared) (transitive) To make a beggar of someone; impoverish. Synonyms: destitute, pauperize, ruin; see also Thesaurus:impoverish (transitive, figurative) To exhaust the resources of; to outdo or go beyond. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Anagrams === bagger == Middle English == === Noun === beggar alternative form of beggere