vagrancy
/ˈveɪɡrənsi/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈveɪɡrənsi/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈvā-grən(t)-sē/ (ame, mw)
vagrancy — noun
1. the situation of living without a fixed home and wandering because you are poor
the situation of living without a fixed home and wandering because you are poor and cannot find steady work
Saira volunteered at a shelter that provides support to people facing vagrancy.
collocation: facing vagrancy
Élise's doctoral thesis explores the connection between vagrancy and mental illness.
The number of families pushed into vagrancy has grown sharply since the plant closures.
In many countries, vagrancy is seen as a social problem, not a personal choice.
- homelessness
broader term; vagrancy adds a roaming/wandering element
- destitution
focuses on extreme poverty rather than the lack of a fixed home
- itinerancy
can imply a chosen lifestyle of travel; vagrancy suggests poverty and hardship
- settled life
living stably in one place with a home and income
用法筆記
Frequently used with prepositions 'into' (fall into vagrancy) and 'of' (state of vagrancy). Distinguish from sense 2: this sense refers to the general condition, not the legal charge.
常見錯誤
2. the offense of sleeping rough and begging because you have no regular job or way
the offense of sleeping rough and begging because you have no regular job or way to earn money
James was convicted of vagrancy after police found him sleeping in a public park.
passive: convicted of vagrancy
Apinya studied how vagrancy laws were used to control poverty in nineteenth-century England.
Human rights groups argue that vagrancy statutes punish homelessness instead of addressing its causes.
Layla found old newspaper articles about people arrested for vagrancy during the Great Depression.
用法筆記
Historically used as a broad police power charge. Many jurisdictions have repealed or restricted vagrancy laws because they target poor and homeless people rather than preventing actual crime. This sense is primarily legal-historical in modern usage.