tank town

noun

1. a town where trains stop to take on a supply of water.
2. any small, unimportant, or uninteresting town.

Word History and Origins

Origin of tank town¹

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15

Example Sentences

She waited by the window, looking out upon without seeing the few rude buildings that composed a tank town at which the train had made a halt for water.

From Project Gutenberg

Together they tour the tank town rodeo circuit, always following the same strategy.

From Time Magazine Archive

Department of Justice has heard them, and filed an application aimed at forcing the big distributors to sell their theaters within three years, Goldwyn's The Princess and the Pirate, made last summer, has shown in many a U.S. tank town, and in India and China.

From Time Magazine Archive

They both tell the story of a good ole boy leading his small-top troupe from one tank town to another, juggling dreams of success and threats of eviction, extortion and worse.

From Time Magazine Archive

Its actors are unknowns, its scene a Southwestern tank town, and its subject boredom.

From Time Magazine Archive