racial

adjective ra·cial \ ˈrā-shəl \

Updated on: 21 May 2018

1 : of, relating to, or based on a race

a racial minority

2 : existing or occurring between races

racial equality

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racially

play \ˈrā-shə-lē\ adverb

See racial defined for English-language learners

See racial defined for kids

Examples of racial in a Sentence

What is your racial identity?
There was racial tension on campus.

Recent Examples of racial from the Web

The lawsuit comes on the heels of recent cases of police being called on black people that have sparked uproar and claims of racial profiling.

— NBC News, "Homeless man jailed for three months after trying pay for Burger King with $10 bill files suit," 18 May 2018
Screenshot via Facebook For the past few weeks, national attention has focused heavily on issues of racial profiling after a number of high-profile incidents involving white people calling the police on people of color spread on social media.

— p.r. lockhart, Vox, "A white lawyer threatened to call ICE on Spanish-speaking restaurant workers. Twitter is tearing him apart.," 16 May 2018
The teens' April 30 encounter with police has been met with shock and outrage nationwide, as one of numerous examples of racial profiling to make headlines in recent weeks.

— mary hudetz, The Christian Science Monitor, "Suspicions of Native American teens point to cultural disconnect," 14 May 2018
Among other things, the legislation: would target federal money to high-poverty areas, establish a commission to consider the effect of solitary confinement in prison and end racial profiling by law enforcers, USA Today said.

— drew broach, NOLA.com, "Cedric Richmond, Congressional Black Caucus push broad bill for jobs, justice," 11 May 2018
While its good-faith attempts to dig into issues like police brutality and racial profiling have been a little toothless, its treatment of its LGBTQ characters has been pitch-perfect.

— tom philip, GQ, "RIP Brooklyn Nine-Nine, One of the Best Sitcoms on TV," 11 May 2018
Applebee's is suing its Kansas City area franchise owner over the abrupt closing of the restaurant at Independence Center following a racial profiling incident that drew national attention.

— mark davis, kansascity, "Applebee's sues over closing of KC area restaurant in racial profiling case, 6 others | The Kansas City Star," 10 May 2018
Residents are frustrated by racial profiling and a lack of fresh and healthy food in these stores.

— diana budds, Curbed, "Want a more equitable city? Try food-oriented design," 10 May 2018
Police say the surveillance will make the city safer but critics are concerned about privacy infringement and racial profiling.

— aubrey nagle, Philly.com, "Asbestos levels putting schools at risk, Sixers end playoff run | Morning Newsletter," 10 May 2018

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