poor as a church mouse poor as a church mouse {adj. phr.}, {informal} Penniless; broke; extremely poor. The newly arrived boat people were poor as church mice. Categories: add yours {adj. phr.} {informal} Source: A Dictionary of American Idioms by A. Makkai, M.T. Boatner, J.E. Gates © 2024 » In RussianTo section: P Subscribe to: American IdiomsIdioms feedEnglish languageHome page and general feed Comment on this entry