low-income

IPA/ˌləʊˈɪŋ.kʌm/
KK[lˌoˈɪnkəm]IPA/ˌloʊˈɪŋ.kʌm/

low-income — 形容詞

1. earning far below the average income in a country or region, often at or under t

1.形容詞B1
釋義

低收入的

收入低於一般標準的

earning far below the average income in a country or region, often at or under the official poverty level.

例句

The Minh family qualified for free school meals because they were low-income.

Minh 一家人因為屬於低收入戶，所以有資格申請免費的學校午餐。

predicative use: be low-income

Devika grew up in a low-income household but later became a successful nurse.

Devika 在低收入家庭長大，但後來成為一位優秀的護理師。

attributive: low-income + household

同義詞
  • poor

    broader and more emotive; implies lack of basic necessities, not just low earnings

  • disadvantaged

    includes other barriers beyond income, such as education or location

  • underprivileged

    suggests a lack of social opportunities and advantages

反義詞
  • high-income

    direct opposite in terms of earnings level

  • wealthy

    implies significant assets and financial comfort, not just high earnings

文法句型

low-income + noun (family, household, worker)

be low-income (predicative)

用法筆記

Frequently used in official policy language and social statistics. As a predicate it sounds slightly formal — in everyday speech people often say 'don't earn much' instead of 'are low-income'.

常見錯誤

❌The family is low income.
✅The family is low-income.
💡The compound adjective must include the hyphen when used before or after a noun.
❌He is a low-earning worker.
✅He is a low-income worker.
💡Use 'low-income' for earnings; 'low-earning' is uncommon in this context.

2. designed for or offered to people who have little money.

2.形容詞B1
釋義

低收入戶的

為低收入者提供的

designed for or offered to people who have little money.

例句

The city built low-income apartments near the new train station for essential workers.

市政府在新建的火車站附近為必要行業人員建造了低收入戶公寓。

collocation: low-income apartments

Tara works at a low-income health clinic that charges patients according to what they can pay.

Tara 在一間低收入戶健保診所工作，該診所根據患者的負擔能力收費。

relative clause after low-income noun

同義詞
  • subsidised

    focuses on government or organisational financial support; narrower than low-income

  • affordable

    emphasises price rather than the income profile of the users

  • assisted

    suggests some form of help (housing, healthcare) is provided

反義詞
  • market-rate

    opposite of subsidised housing — priced at full market value

  • affluent

    describes wealthy areas, the opposite of low-income neighbourhoods

文法句型

low-income + noun (housing, area, country, clinic)

用法筆記

Not used for products that are merely cheap — a restaurant serving inexpensive food is 'affordable' or 'budget', not 'low-income'. Used mainly for public services, housing programmes, and statistical descriptions of areas.

常見錯誤

❌This restaurant is low-income.' (meaning the food is cheap)
✅This restaurant is affordable / budget-friendly.
💡'Low-income' describes services for people with little money, not cheap goods in general.
❌Low-income country is still developing.
✅A low-income country is still developing.
💡When used as an attributive adjective, the article is required.