Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Impoverishment \Im*pov"er*ish*ment\, n. [Cf. OF.
   empoverissement, and F. appauvrissement.]
   The act of impoverishing, or the state of being impoverished;
   reduction to poverty. --Sir W. Scott.

Source : WordNet®

impoverishment
     n 1: the state of having little or no money and few or no
          material possessions [syn: {poverty}, {poorness}] [ant:
          {wealth}]
     2: the act of making someone poor [syn: {pauperization}, {pauperisation}]