non-white

1 of 2

adjective

ˌnän-ˈ(h)wīt 

variants or less commonly nonwhite

1

: not of a white race (see race entry 1 sense 1a)

non-white immigrants

non-white Alaskans

2

: not of the color white

… I was standing at the very top of the ladder and stretching to paint over the last non-white spot on the ceiling …

—Xaver Bayer

non-white

2 of 2

noun

variants or less commonly nonwhite

plural non-whites also nonwhites

: a person who is not of a white race (see race entry 1 sense 1a)

Examples of non-white in a Sentence

Noun

The program is even less popular among nonwhites.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

This photo seems to have a lot of non-white students, many of them American citizens and University of Texas students. — ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026

Of the respondents who provided demographic information, 84% were white and 16% were non-white. — Matthew Kelly updated June 26, Kansas City Star, 26 June 2026

Noun

Worries about big-brother government and non-white foreigners proliferated. — Michael E. Neagle, Hartford Courant, 8 Sep. 2026

Nationally, white lawmakers typically hold some of the 115-plus House seats where the voting-age population is majority non-white. — ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1806, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1864, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for non-white

• affright
• airtight
• albite
• alight
• alright
• aplite
• aright
• bainite
• birthright
• bobwhite
• bornite
• bullfight