poverty threshold
nounUK /ˈpɒvəti ˈθrɛʃhəʊld/
US /ˈpɑːvərti ˈθrɛʃhoʊld/
The poverty threshold is the amount of money a family needs to buy the basic things they need to live.
The government uses the poverty threshold to decide which families need extra help.
RELATED WORDS
OTHER MEANINGS
2. A statistical cutoff used by governments to count how many people are poor.
The census reports how many households fall below the poverty threshold.
3. The lowest income at which a person or family is considered able to meet basic needs.
Rising rent pushed many families under the poverty threshold.
4. An official benchmark that changes each year with prices and family size.
The poverty threshold is adjusted annually for inflation.