plural slums
: a densely populated usually urban area marked especially by poverty
slummed; slumming; slums
: to visit slums especially out of curiosity
broadly
: to go somewhere or do something that might be considered beneath one's station
—sometimes used with it
slumming it in budget hotels
slummer
noun
Examples of slum in a Sentence
Noun
He grew up in the slums of New York.
Verb
He sometimes likes to go slumming in bars around the city.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 19 Feb. 2026
Jackson’s local standing, especially with Black clergy, helped Jackson become a pivotal part of the Chicago Freedom Movement, which was focused on housing discrimination with the aim of putting an end to the city’s slum housing.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Running in the former Pyramid Club space (imagine a small sweaty party in the 1980s where celebrities slummed it with art kids), Night Club 101 has become the room every independent musician wants to play.
—The Editors, Curbed, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for slum
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Noun
The hostage was then held in Village de Dieu, a seaside slum south of the capital that serves as the gang leader’s base of operations and a kidnapping lair.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 19 Feb. 2026
Jackson’s local standing, especially with Black clergy, helped Jackson become a pivotal part of the Chicago Freedom Movement, which was focused on housing discrimination with the aim of putting an end to the city’s slum housing.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
Verb
Booted out of his royal Windsor lodgings, was slumming it on the king’s private estate in Norfolk.
—Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Running in the former Pyramid Club space (imagine a small sweaty party in the 1980s where celebrities slummed it with art kids), Night Club 101 has become the room every independent musician wants to play.
—The Editors, Curbed, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for slum
Cite this Entry
“Slum.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slum. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
slum
1 of 2 noun
: a thickly populated section especially of a city marked by crowding, dirty run-down housing, and generally poor living conditions
slum
2 of 2 verb
slummed; slumming
: to visit slums especially out of curiosity
slummer
noun
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