depauperation
A family in a rural village struggles with depauperation after a poor harvest.
Noun: - The process of becoming poor or impoverished: "depauperation" refers to the act or state of being reduced to poverty or a condition of lacking resources. - The act of weakening or enfeebling: In a biological or ecological context, "depauperation" can mean the process of making something weak, depleted, or diminished in vitality or diversity.
- (The crisis caused these communities to become poor.)
- (The soil became depleted and weakened.)
- (The bird population became diminished in number and health.)
"Depauperate" (adj): describing something that is impoverished, lacking in richness, or deficient in species or resources.
- The depauperate flora of the desert cannot support large herbivores. (The plant life is poor and sparse.)
"Depauperation" in ecology: often used to describe a decline in biodiversity or the simplification of an ecosystem.
- The depauperation of coral reefs due to climate change threatens marine life. (The reefs are becoming less diverse and more degraded.)
Depauperate (adj): impoverished; lacking in abundance or variety.
- The depauperate forest had few tree species. (The forest was poor in plant diversity.)
Depauperization (n): a less common variant meaning the same as depauperation.
- Impoverishment: the process of becoming poor or deprived of quality.
- Depletion: reduction in quantity or strength.
- Enfeeblement: the act of making weak or feeble.
To be reduced to beggary: to become extremely poor (similar in meaning to depauperation).
- After the business failed, he was reduced to beggary. (He became impoverished.)
To drain the life out of: to weaken or exhaust something completely.
- The drought drained the life out of the once-lush valley. (It caused depauperation of the land.)