shantytown

noun

shan·​ty·​town ˈshan-tē-ˌtau̇n How to pronounce shantytown (audio)
Synonyms of shantytownnext
: a usually poor town or section of a town consisting mostly of shanties

Examples of shantytown in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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During this time, Paksa was volunteering with a Peronist unidad básica (grassroots unit) in a shantytown close to her home in the midsize city of Castelar, which coincided with a heightened focus on state violence in her work. Daniel R. Quiles, Artforum, 1 Mar. 2026 In the brightly billboarded carcass of a West Coast city, private security shields the corporate enclaves of a tech élite from the shantytowns of the economically superfluous. Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026 And one night, a bunch of the editors of The Dartmouth Review descended on the shantytown protests and, with sledgehammers, slammed them down. David Frum, The Atlantic, 28 Jan. 2026 Their target was the Comando Vermelho (CV), or Red Command, a criminal organization that has ruled these hillside shantytowns for decades. Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 9 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for shantytown

Word History

First Known Use

1876, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of shantytown was in 1876

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Cite this Entry

“Shantytown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shantytown. Accessed 14 Mar. 2026.

Kids Definition

shantytown

noun
shan·​ty·​town -ˌtau̇n How to pronounce shantytown (audio)
: a usually poor town or section of a town made up mostly of shanties
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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