ghetto

noun

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ghet·to | \ ˈge-(ˌ)tō

plural ghettos also ghettoes

Definition of ghetto

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 : a quarter of a city in which Jews were formerly required to live

2 : a quarter of a city in which members of a minority group live especially because of social, legal, or economic pressure

3a : an isolated group a geriatric ghetto

b : a situation that resembles a ghetto especially in conferring inferior status or limiting opportunity the pink-collar ghetto

ghetto

adjective

Definition of ghetto (Entry 2 of 3)

often disparaging

: of, relating to, being, or characteristic of a ghetto (see ghetto entry 1 sense 2) or the people who live there ghetto youth/music ghetto neighborhoods Features that, according to [El] Jones, are often shamed and seen as "ugly, ghetto, or unprofessional" when on Black people, but suddenly become desirable and attractive when on a white person. — CBC Kids News And lest anyone think graffiti itself is dead … the memorial walls are the latest outburst and refinement of ghetto art springing up in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and beyond.— David Gonzalez … the many social and cultural factors that went into the creation of a permanent class of ghetto poor, unable to move into the mainstream.— Jonathan Alter

ghetto

verb

ghettoed; ghettoing; ghettos

Definition of ghetto (Entry 3 of 3)

transitive verb

: ghettoize

Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about ghetto

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Did You Know?

The etymology of Italian ghetto was formerly the subject of much speculation, but today there is little doubt that the word comes from the Italian dialect form ghèto, meaning “foundry.” A foundry for cannons was once located on an island that forms part of Venice, where in 1516 the Venetians restricted Jewish residence. The word ghèto became the name for the area and was borrowed into standard Italian as ghetto, with the meaning of “section of a city where Jews are forced to live.” From there it passed into most other European languages. Since the late 19th century, the meaning of ghetto has been extended to crowded urban districts where other ethnic or racial groups have been confined by poverty or prejudice.

Examples of ghetto in a Sentence

Noun He grew up in the ghetto.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun John Singleton’s seminal coming-of-age film follows the lives of three young males living in the Crenshaw ghetto of Los Angeles, dissecting questions of race, relationships, violence and future prospects. — Ben Flanagan | Bflanagan@al.com, al, "New on Netflix December 2020," 1 Dec. 2020 In April 1943, Adamski and her parents were deported to the Theresienstadt ghetto, in then-Czechoslovakia. — Eliza Fawcett, courant.com, "Gisela Adamski, Holocaust survivor and educator who lived in West Hartford, dies at 92," 23 Nov. 2020 In October, a ghetto was created for Jews who were allowed to remain temporarily, including Celan and his parents. — Ruth Franklin, The New Yorker, "How Paul Celan Reconceived Language for a Post-Holocaust World," 16 Nov. 2020 When Germany invaded Lithuania in 1941, the Nazis confined Meisel and her mother, sister and brother to a ghetto. — Zoë Jackson, Star Tribune, "Judy Meisel, Holocaust survivor and activist, dies at 91," 9 Nov. 2020 John Singleton’s seminal coming-of-age film follows the lives of three young males living in the Crenshaw ghetto of Los Angeles, dissecting questions of race, relationships, violence and future prospects. — Ben Flanagan | Bflanagan@al.com, al, "New on Netflix: November 2020," 2 Nov. 2020 The next years brought a move to the ghetto and the start of the war. — Erin Adler, Star Tribune, "Anita Rowden, Holocaust survivor and subject of book about her WWII experiences, dies at 93," 29 Oct. 2020 An equal pay for work of equal value clause insulates women from the wage inequity inherent in pink ghetto jobs, or jobs that are underpaid by virtue of being predominantly female. — Katica Roy, Fortune, "American capitalism needs equal-pay legislation. Canada is showing us how to make it work," 12 Oct. 2020 She was portrayed in the press as a courageous auteur for choosing to work with Black non-actors and crew members, and the documentary scenes were characterized as a rare glimpse at the reality of the ghetto. — Sarah Cowan, The New York Review of Books, "The Complicated Camera of Filmmaker Shirley Clarke," 10 Oct. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ghetto.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.