Definition of favela
: a settlement of jerry-built shacks lying on the outskirts of a Brazilian city
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Recent Examples of favela from the Web
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Thousands of troops and police are entering a complex of favelas in Rio de Janeiro in one of the largest operations since the military took control of security in the Brazilian city last month.
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The aggressive stop-and-search patrols, however, lasted only a few weeks — part of what the military called a blitz to gain a grip on the favela.
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However, some students were in class Monday morning when shots were fired in Rocinha, one of Rio's many dense favelas.
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They are also overrepresented in favelas where violence and murder of blacks by police are rampant.
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Franco’s death came weeks after Brazil’s president Michel Temer gave the military sweeping security powers in Rio’s sprawling favela, where gang violence is rife.
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The incandescent Revueltas suite, derived from one of his film scores, is a touchstone of the Mexican repertoire; pairing it with Mr. Glass’s tribute to Rocinha, a Rio de Janeiro favela, gives the program a vaguely Latin American theme.
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Recently, rival drug trafficking gangs and factions in Rio de Janeiro’s giant Rocinha favela have fought several frightening street battles for dominance.
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Maria de Pena Souza, 59, lives with her 24-year-old son in a small house with a zinc roof in the Lins favela in western Rio.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'favela.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of favela
Brazilian Portuguese favela, perhaps from Favela, hill outside Rio de Janeiro
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