Meanings
plural squalors
- uncountableusuallyFilthiness and degradation, as from neglect or poverty
bring this sort of squalor among the upper classes
1852 March – 1853 September, Charles Dickens, “Chapter XII”, in Bleak House, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1853, →OCLC2 more examples
The heterogenous indigent multitude, everywhere wearing nearly the same aspect of squalor.
1860, Isaac Taylor, Ultimate Civilization: And other essaysWe’re living in squalor That’s the name of this house This house is called squalor by all There’s a door broken somewhere but I never can remember quite where.
2013, Car Seat Headrest, We Can't Afford (Your Depression Anymore)Synonyms: squalidness, foulness, filthiness, squalidity
Synonyms & antonyms
nounFilthiness and degradation, as from neglect or poverty
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinsquālor
- Englishsqualor
From the Latin squālor.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian мръсотия, мизерия
- мръсотия (mrăsotija)squalidness
- мизерия (mizerija)squalidness
Catalan misèria, indigència
- misèriasqualidness
- indigènciasqualidness
Chinese Mandarin 骯髒 /肮脏
- 骯髒 /肮脏 (āngzāng)squalidness
Czech špína, bída
- špínasqualidness
- bídasqualidness
Danish snusk, smuds
- snusksqualidness
- smudssqualidness
Dutch weerzinwekkende vuiligheid, miserabele omstandigheden
- weerzinwekkende vuiligheidsqualidness
- miserabele omstandighedensqualidness
Finnish surkeus, kurjuus
- surkeussqualidness
- kurjuussqualidness
French saleté repoussante, conditions misérables
- saleté repoussantesqualidness
- conditions misérablessqualidness
German Schmutz, Elend
- Schmutzsqualidness
- Elendsqualidness
- Vernachlässigungsqualidness
- Ärmlichkeitsqualidness
- Drecksqualidness
- Verschmutzungsqualidness
- Unreinheitsqualidness
- Verderbtheitsqualidness
- Verkommenheitsqualidness
Hungarian nyomor, mocsok
- nyomorsqualidness
- mocsoksqualidness
- nélkülözéssqualidness
Latin squālor
- squālorsqualidness
Māori hawa
- hawasqualidness
Polish plugastwo, brud
- plugastwosqualidness
- brudsqualidness
Portuguese esqualidez, esqualor
- esqualidezsqualidness
- esqualorsqualidness
Russian грязь, убо́жество
- грязь (grjazʹ)squalidness
- убо́жество (ubóžestvo)squalidness
Spanish miseria, inmundicia
- miseriasqualidness
- inmundiciasqualidness
Swedish misär, elände
- misärsqualidness
- eländesqualidness
- smutssqualidness
- lortsqualidness
- snusksqualidness
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with squalor
All rhymes →Sounds the same
Cite this entry
squalor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/squalor
“squalor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/squalor. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “squalor,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/squalor.
Source: squalor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.