ghost town

Definition of ghost town

: a once-flourishing town wholly or nearly deserted usually as a result of the exhaustion of some natural resource

Examples of ghost town in a Sentence

After all the gold was mined, the place became a ghost town.

Recent Examples on the Web No one wants Skagway to turn into a ghost town like nearby Dyea. — Fran Golden, Condé Nast Traveler, "Tourism-Reliant Cruise Ports Face a Tough Summer Ahead," 22 June 2020 Do your research before taking a drive to see a ghost town. — Chris Malloy, Condé Nast Traveler, "Arizona’s Ghost Towns Are a Natural Escape During Coronavirus," 8 June 2020 To see the city transform, essentially overnight, from a ghost town to one exploding with life and righteous anger has been overwhelming, in every sense. — Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, "Bill de Blasio Faces the Fury of New Yorkers, on and off “The Brian Lehrer Show”," 6 June 2020 But now that the coronavirus pandemic has forced state leaders to impose a 14-day quarantine on travelers arriving to the islands, Waikiki is mostly a ghost town. — Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, USA TODAY, "Locals take back tourist-free Waikiki, Hawaii, during coronavirus pandemic," 1 June 2020 Downtown Toronto has become a ghost town since shutdowns to stem the spread of the virus were put in place in early March. — Doug Alexander, Bloomberg.com, "Major Toronto Businesses to Keep Staff Home Until September," 1 June 2020 In the Terlingua ghost town, live music was heard at the Star Light Theater for the first time in two months. — John Maccormack, San Antonio Express-News, "After hard shutdown, Big Bend slowly reopening," 1 June 2020 But now that the pandemic has forced state leaders to impose a 14-day quarantine on travelers arriving to the islands, Waikiki is mostly a ghost town. — BostonGlobe.com, "Will protests spark a 2nd viral wave?," 31 May 2020 The city’s picturesque downtown drag, on the other hand, was a ghost town late in the morning, record store owner Bruce LaVerne told The Oregonian/OregonLive. — oregonlive, "McMinnville businesses see a ‘mixed bag’ as they enter Phase 1 of reopening," 15 May 2020

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

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Last Updated

1 Jul 2020

Cite this Entry

“Ghost town.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghost%20town. Accessed 10 Jul. 2020.

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