ghetto

American  

[get-oh] / ˈgɛt oʊ /

noun

plural

ghettos, ghettoes

1. a section of a city, especially a thickly populated slum area, inhabited predominantly by members of an ethnic or other minority group, often as a result of social pressures or economic hardships.

2. (formerly, in most European countries) a section of a city in which all Jews were required to live.

3. any mode of living, working, etc., that results from stereotyping or biased treatment.

   job ghettos for women; ghettos for the elderly.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or characteristic of life in a ghetto or the people who live there.

   ghetto culture.

2. Slang: Often Disparaging and Offensive. noting something that is considered to be unrefined, low-class, cheap, or inferior.

ghetto British  

/ ˈɡɛtəʊ /

noun

1. sociol a densely populated slum area of a city inhabited by a socially and economically deprived minority

2. an area in a European city in which Jews were formerly required to live

3. a group or class of people that is segregated in some way

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Etymology

Origin of ghetto

First recorded in 1605–15; from Italian, originally the name of an island near Venice where Jews were forced to reside in the 16th century, from Venetian dialect: literally, “foundry for artillery” (giving the island its name); futher origin uncertain

Example Sentences

Shipper survived two concentration camps, including Auschwitz-Birkenau in occupied Poland, a death march, and the Lodz ghetto - a Jewish ghetto established by the Nazis which was plagued by disease, starvation and forced labour.

From BBC • Jan. 27, 2026

He has faced a concerted challenge from singer-turned-politician Bobi Wine, 43, who styles himself the "ghetto president", after his stronghold in a slum where he grew up in the capital, Kampala.

From Barron's • Jan. 15, 2026

Afterward, a group of children come to the dressing room, with a criticism: “In the ghetto, that’s not how it was,” says one.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 14, 2026

Hundreds of thousands of Jews were crammed into the ghetto, where they faced poverty, starvation, disease and cold.

From BBC • Oct. 24, 2025

Then they will ride out of the ghetto with the mailbags and get dropped off during the route, somewhere close to the market, then make their way to Tatarska Street from there.

From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron