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Chinatown

American

[chahy-nuh-toun] / ˈtʃaɪ nəˌtaʊn /

noun

the main Chinese district in any city outside China.

Chinatown British

/ ˈtʃaɪnəˌtaʊn /

noun

a quarter of any city or town outside China with a predominantly Chinese population

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Chinatown

China + town

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:

Chinatown

On my first trip to a small storefront in Chinatown, I spent about $20 to play nine times.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

For Wok Wok, a Malaysian restaurant tucked below a pharmacy in the heart of Chinatown, the exposure has been a game changer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

The opposite is true in Chinatown, where the older generations are stuck with dwindling food access.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

“We wouldn’t be in Chinatown if it weren’t for him,” said Jack Benchakul, owner of minimalist coffee shop Endorffeine.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

He didn’t speak very good English, because he hadn’t left Chinatown since he came from Taiwan, because there was no reason for him to.

From "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023