armpit

American  

[ahrm-pit] / ˈɑrmˌpɪt /

noun

armpits plural

1. the hollow under the arm at the shoulder; axilla.

2. Slang. the worst possible place or area.

   Their car has broken down, stranding them in the armpit of California until it can be fixed.

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armpit British  

/ ˈɑːmˌpɪt /

noun

1. Technical name: axilla.  the small depression beneath the arm where it joins the shoulder

2. slang an extremely unpleasant place

   the armpit of the Mediterranean

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• armpits
  plural

Etymology

Origin of armpit

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English; arm ¹ + pit ¹ ( def. )

Explanation

Your armpit is the area underneath your upper arm, where it connects to your shoulder. Armpits tend to be smelly, so we would advise to steer clear of an open armpit on a bus or subway. Another common word for armpit is "underarm," while the official anatomical term is axilla. Perhaps because your armpits tend to get sweaty and a little smelly after you exercise, the word armpit is sometimes used as a derogatory term for an unattractive place: "That city is so ugly it's the armpit of New Jersey." Before armpit, the axilla was known as an arm-hole.

Example Sentences

A US entertainment website has apologised to the "people of Shotts" and Caitriona Balfe after a misquoting the Outlander actress calling the town "an armpit".

From BBC • May 23, 2026

The operation has also left Dawn in constant pain across her chest and under her armpit.

From BBC • Nov. 28, 2025

When Gustave Flaubert saw Antonio Canova’s sculpture “Eros and Psyche” in 1845, he surreptitiously kissed Psyche’s marble armpit.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025

“It really changed the notion that we were the armpit of the region.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2025

“You want an armpit hand too? And I’m going to Central Community so I can stay at my momma’s house and watch out for my sisters.”

From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas