shanty

1 of 2

noun (1)

shan·​ty ˈshan- 

variant spelling of chantey

: a song sung by sailors in rhythm with their work

shanty

2 of 2

noun (2)

shan·​ty ˈshan-tē 

plural shanties

: a small crudely built dwelling or shelter usually of wood

Synonyms

Noun (2)

• cabin
• camp
• hooch [slang]
• hootch
• hovel
• hut
• hutch
• hutment
• shack

Examples of shanty in a Sentence

Noun (2)

lived just off the beach in a crude shanty

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

But the second movement unlocked the rhetorical qualities essential to Beethoven’s self-referential classic — the striding melody dissipating into a whisper, squirrelly strings introducing a minor-key woodwind shanty, a coda that seemed to shrug genially. —Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 14 July 2024

The Connecticut Sea Music Festival brings shanties and more to Essex, and Connecticut Virtuosi and guest artists are telling the history of Brazil with music and dance. —Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2024

Only big enough to fit a few people, Verdugo and the rest of his family would rotate in and out of the shanty during fishing trips for walleye, northern pike, perch and bass. —Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 14 May 2024

Most of the mining towns in the area were just tent camps or shanty towns that wouldn’t last more than a year or two. —Ashlea Halpern, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 May 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun (2)

probably from Canadian French chantier lumber camp, hut, from French, builder's yard, ways, support for barrels, from Old French chantier, gantier support — more at gantry

First Known Use

Noun (2)

1820, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

shanty

1 of 2

variant of chantey

shanty

2 of 2 noun

shan·​ty

ˈshant-ē

plural shanties

: shack, hut