shantytown

[ shan-tee-toun ]

noun

1. a section, as of a city or town characterized by shanties and crudely built houses.
2. a whole town or city that is chiefly made up of shantylike houses.

shantytown

/ ˈʃæntɪˌtaʊn /

noun

1. a town or section of a town or city inhabited by very poor people living in shanties, esp in a developing country

Word History and Origins

Origin of shantytown¹

First recorded in 1880–85; shanty ¹ + town

Example Sentences

Full of snappy and snappish dialogue, the book imagines a carnival-esque week’s idyll in the “shantytown of millionaires” that was 1950s Malibu.

From Los Angeles Times

One obvious model was the anti-apartheid protests of the 1980s, which saw students erect “shantytowns” on many campuses.

From Salon

They also revealed how poor people, who live in sprawling shantytowns without access to proper roads, water or power, bear the biggest brunt of destructive floods.

From New York Times

Plumes of smoke rose from a blaze in a hillside shantytown.

From New York Times

The Biden administration on Wednesday sued the developers behind a massive migrant shantytown in Texas, arguing the company that runs Colony Ridge promised Hispanic newcomers move-in ready homes but delivered flood-prone houses and economic ruin.

From Washington Times