Crossword Genius

Born and died, unknown, poor (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

needy

'poor' is the definition.
(I know that needy is a type of poor)

'born and died unknown' is the wordplay.
'born' becomes 'nee' ('nee' is 'born' in French).
'and' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'died' becomes 'd' (abbreviation next to the year of someone's death).
'unknown' becomes 'y' (algebra).
'nee'+'d'+'y'='NEEDY'

(Other definitions for needy that I've seen before include "Poor - destitute" , "Deprived" , "penniless" , "lacking resources" , "Necessitous" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun and The Times.
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