gangsta

American  

[gang-stuh] / ˈgæŋ stə /

noun

gangstas plural

1. a member of an urban street gang.

   He was a true gangsta, and he fought like a soldier for his turf.

   Synonyms:

   cholo, homie, homeboy, thug

2. gangsta rap.

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adjective

1. of or characteristic of urban street gangs, their members, or gangsta rap.

   There was no hiding his prison record or his gangsta tattoos from potential employers.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• gangstas
  plural

Etymology

Origin of gangsta

First recorded in 1985–90; representing the typically r-less African American Vernacular English pronunciation of gangster ( def. )

Compare meaning

How does gangsta compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• gangster vs. gangsta

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gangsta gangstas

“My gangsta had her baby,” the “Bandit” rapper says in the video, before asking Mychelle, “How do you feel?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026

When no one is around, the doleful ex-judge listens to Italian gangsta rap, and sometimes even raps along with it, suggesting he isn’t quite the stereotype others assume him to be.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025

"I just wanted to feel like a little gangsta," she said.

From BBC ● May 5, 2025

They can just keep playing "Call of Duty" or scrolling social media without having to worry that their "gangsta" leader won't win.

From Salon ● Oct. 21, 2024

I tried to act gangsta, but I was grinning and laughing too hard.

From "The Stars Beneath Our Feet" by David Barclay Moore

“At odd hours of the night, Roscoe’s hops with hip-hop gangstas and old-time crooners, funkateers and exponents of new-jack swing, athletes and bodyguards,” Gold wrote.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2022

Donning bathrobe and slippers, he devotes a verse to hustlers and gangstas while moving in synchronized step with dancers down a hotel hallway.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2016

It’s the fake gangstas that Staples is more scornful of.

From The Guardian ● Oct. 26, 2015

Hip-hop heads of a certain age — call us OGs, original gangstas — remember where we were when N.W.A.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 12, 2015

I walked around the karate kickers and the gangstas and pushed open a heavy wooden door.

From "Tangerine" by Edward Bloor