inhabitant
Americannoun
-
inhabitants
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of inhabitant
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin inhabitant- (stem of inhabitāns ) dwelling in. See inhabit, -ant
Explanation
Someone who usually lives in a specific place — whether it's a mansion, a cave, or a beach house — is its inhabitant. The old man who lives in the scary house down the street is its inhabitant, and the skunk that built a nest under your porch is — unfortunately — an inhabitant of your front yard. The noun inhabitant comes from the verb inhabit, or "to live in," which in turn is rooted in the Latin word inhabitare, "to dwell in or to live in."
Vocabulary lists containing inhabitant
Unit 4: Powerful Openings
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Geography and World Regions
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The First State of Being
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Saxony-Anhalt had the second highest number of far-right motivated criminal acts per inhabitant last year, according to police statistics.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
And yet some residents of El Dorado, a gold mining town situated in the heart of the Mining Arc, appreciate their presence, one inhabitant told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
In the U.K. if the ruling party changes its leader it means a new inhabitant of 10 Downing Street, even without a fresh national poll.
From MarketWatch ● May 6, 2026
In this case, a cave filled with the remains of past meals became a shelter for a completely different kind of inhabitant.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 3, 2026
The front of the cage had a slot for the name of the inhabitant, but no one had bothered to use it.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
Crayfish are familiar inhabitants of streams, rivers, and other freshwater environments.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
A BAS team sailed for 15 days to reach the island and study its avian inhabitants, using drones, aerial photography and fitting tracking devices to 20 birds.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
“In an experience like this, you’re alone with the inhabitants of the world, and they’re all there as part of your hallucination, your dream and your journey,” Neiden says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
The setting for Alex Preston’s “A Stranger in Corfu” is the Greek island of Vidos, nicknamed Spyland by its inhabitants, all of whom are retired British intelligence agents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
He organized boat races in the basin of the Court of Honor that pitted inhabitants of the Midway villages against one another.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
