Meaning
poverty
- trouble, suffering
- pittance, trifle
In a sentence
Molte famiglie vivono ancora nella miseria.
Many families still live in poverty.
Che miseria hai passato in quel periodo?
What hardship did you go through in that period?
Mi hanno pagato una miseria per quel lavoro.
They paid me a pittance for that job.
Word forms (2)
| Word | Word forms |
|---|---|
| miseria | feminine · singular |
| miserie | feminine · plural |
Usage notes
- For economic hardship, miseria is stronger and more emotional than povertà; povertà is more neutral and common in formal contexts.
- In speech, che miseria! expresses frustration or pity, often like “what a mess” or “how awful,” not just literal poverty.
- A misery amount is often una miseria: Ho guadagnato una miseria = “I earned next to nothing.”