Micawber threshold
Micawber threshold proper noun: a level of income, above the poverty line, but not high enough to cope with economic shocks.
Proper noun
Micawber threshold
- A level of income, above the poverty line, but not high enough to cope with economic shocks.
- As for the moderate poverty line, the existence of positive expected net savings capacity is in a sense a Micawber threshold [Dickens 1849-50, ch. 14], separating accumulation from decumulation of the present value of a person's human and physical capital stock.1994, Philip L. Martin, Mexican Maquiladoras: Origins, Operations and Outlook (International Institute for Labour Studies, 1994) p. 9
- If drawing down such assets pushes the household below the Micawber threshold, then the estimated poverty-trap asset dynamics again predict that the temporary shock will have permanent, long-run effects.2006, Vishnu Padayachee, The Development Decade?: Economic and Social Change in South Africa, 1994-2004, HSRC Press, page 132
Origin of Micawber threshold
From the Dickens character Wilkins Micawber, known for his inability to work his way out of poverty.
Questions about Micawber threshold
- What does Micawber threshold mean?
- Micawber threshold means a level of income, above the poverty line, but not high enough to cope with economic shocks.
- What part of speech is Micawber threshold?
- Micawber threshold is a proper noun.
Words near Micawber threshold in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: Micawber threshold (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Cite this entry: “Micawber threshold.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/micawber_threshold. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.