1. a social class present under the typical socioeconomic scale, frequently condensed within the inner cities and generally marked by poverty, insufficient educational or vocational opportunities, significant unemployment or chronic underemployment, crime, drug or alcohol abuse, poor social services, and few community-reinforcing facilities. 2. more generally, any group without equal or direct entry to the legal, educational, economic, medical, or other customs of a culture.
UNDERCLASS: “The underclass citizens of many third-world countries live very poor, unsatisfying lives.”