white flight

noun

: the departure of whites from places (such as urban neighborhoods or schools) increasingly or predominantly populated by minorities

Examples of white flight in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The district had been neglected and mismanaged for decades, stretching back to when white flight picked up in the 1970s, and later corruption – which eventually led to FBI investigations – made everything worse. Aubri Juhasz, NPR, 8 Sep. 2025 In 1967, the district had hired consultants from the University of Oregon to develop a plan aimed at overcoming the challenges of attendance zones and white flight. Time, 4 Sep. 2025 School desegregation in the cities sparks white flight to the suburbs. Idrees Kahloon, New Yorker, 28 July 2025 With white flight pushing most second-generation Greeks out to the suburbs, Greektown was soon Greek in name only. Charlie Kolodziej, Chicago Tribune, 14 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for white flight

Word History

First Known Use

1956, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of white flight was in 1956

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Cite this Entry

“White flight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/white%20flight. Accessed 13 Sep. 2025.

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