proverb · Words worth keeping
Debt is the worst kind of poverty.
Debt is the worst kind of poverty.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Owing money can make hardship feel especially restrictive because future resources are already committed. The saying emphasises the burden of obligation.
What the words are saying
Poverty is presented as more than having little in hand. Debt adds a claim on what may come later, which can make choices feel narrower and the pressure more persistent. Calling it the worst kind deliberately heightens that concern. The phrase can express a person’s wish to escape an obligation or to think carefully before taking one on. It is not a financial rule that all borrowing is harmful, and it does not establish which hardship is greatest for another person.
Everyday example
Someone with several repayment commitments feels unable to use their next wages for a plan they value.
When to use it
Use it to describe the felt restriction of an outstanding obligation.
What it does not mean
Different debts and circumstances differ; the saying does not supply borrowing advice or judge a borrower’s worth.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 400 · Debt
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English