squalid

adjective

squal·​id ˈskwä-ləd 

1

: marked by filthiness and degradation from neglect or poverty

lived in squalid conditions

2

: sordid

a squalid affair

squalidly adverb

squalidness noun

Choose the Right Synonym for squalid

dirty, filthy, foul, nasty, squalid mean conspicuously unclean or impure.

dirty emphasizes the presence of dirt more than an emotional reaction to it.

a dirty littered street

filthy carries a strong suggestion of offensiveness and typically of gradually accumulated dirt that begrimes and besmears.

a stained greasy floor, utterly filthy

foul implies extreme offensiveness and an accumulation of what is rotten or stinking.

a foul-smelling open sewer

nasty applies to what is actually foul or is repugnant to one expecting freshness, cleanliness, or sweetness.

it's a nasty job to clean up after a sick cat

In practice, nasty is often weakened to the point of being no more than a synonym of unpleasant or disagreeable.

had a nasty fall

his answer gave her a nasty shock

squalid adds to the idea of dirtiness and filth that of slovenly neglect.

squalid slums

All these terms are also applicable to moral uncleanness or baseness or obscenity.

dirty then stresses meanness or despicableness,

don't ask me to do your dirty work

while filthy and foul describe disgusting obscenity or loathsome behavior,

filthy street language

a foul story of lust and greed

and nasty implies a peculiarly offensive unpleasantness.

a stand-up comedian known for nasty humor

Distinctively, squalid implies sordidness as well as baseness and dirtiness.

engaged in a series of squalid affairs

Examples of squalid in a Sentence

The family lived in squalid conditions.

Recent Examples on the Web

Villagers would be forced to flee their homes and packed into squalid makeshift camps. —Lydia Polgreen, Mercury News, 25 Oct. 2025

We’re immediately thrown into a squalid cell in an unnamed Argentinian prison. —Blythe Marks, Them., 17 Oct. 2025

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled to squalid refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh, but Mohammad and his daughter found safety and hope in India. —Esha Mitra, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2025

The two men care for each other amidst the squalid conditions of their imprisonment in 1970s Argentina. —Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin squalidus rough, dirty, from squalēre to be covered with scales or dirt, from squalus dirty; perhaps akin to Latin squama scale

First Known Use

1596, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for squalid

• solid
• stolid
• semisolid

Kids Definition

squalid

adjective

squal·​id ˈskwäl-əd 

1

: filthy or degraded as a result of neglect or the lack of money

2

: vile sense 1a

squalidly adverb

squalidness noun