There are many meanings and definitions to the word "Poverty". Many of us relate it to the thought of homeless people living on streets or to people living in harsh conditions without money of food.Poverty can be seen, and also not seen.

Townsend's work makes it quite clear that poverty is not the lack of money but encompasses things other than strictly material needs.Townsend said that there are two types of poverty, relative poverty and absolute poverty.

Townsend, in particular, pioneered a relative deprivation approach to poverty that covered a wide range of aspects of living standards, both material and social.According to Townsend (Townsend, 1979) he defined poverty as the lack of resources to obtain the types of diet, habits, and living conditions and facilities that are normal, or at least generally encouraged or permitted, in the context to which they belong.

poverty begins with the inability to adequately satisfy the most needs of humans.Peter Townsend distinguished between absolute and relative poverty but relative poverty is not easy to define and is still being contested.