shantytowns

noun

plural of shantytown
as in favelas
a usually poor town or a part of a town where the people live in shanties

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of shantytowns 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 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 Farmers once proud of living and working their ancestral land were driven into poverty and forced into shantytowns. — Nik Kowsar, Time, 2 Oct. 2025 These new shantytowns are plagued with substance abuse, violence and prostitution. — Chicago Tribune, 17 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shantytowns
  1. jungles
  2. encampments
Noun
  • The country has such a diversity of ecosystems, from deserts to jungles and the environments affected by pollution in the story can all be found here.
    — Anna Marie de la Fuente, Variety, 22 Oct. 2026
  • After years in service and living in hobo jungles, Adam returns home.
    — Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of jungles
Noun
  • The ads are intended to promote the idea that Raman isn’t tough on homeless encampments, which Raman says misrepresents her position.
    — Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2026
  • The state mandated that these policies be strengthened after large rallies and encampments protesting the ongoing war in Gaza swept through universities in 2024.
    — Tarini Mehta, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of encampments

Browse Nearby Words

shantytown
shantytowns
shapable
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Shantytowns.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shantytowns. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of Pyrrhic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All