half-caste

[haf-kast, hahf-kahst]

noun

1. a contemptuous term used to refer to a person of mixed racial or ethnic descent.

2. a contemptuous term used to refer to a person of mixed European and Hindu or European and Muslim parentage.

3. a contemptuous term used to refer to a person descended from parents of two different social strata.

adjective

1. of or relating to a half-caste.

half-caste

noun

1. a person having parents of different races, esp the offspring of a European and an Indian

adjective

1. of, relating to, or designating such a person

Word History and Origins

Origin of half-caste¹

First recorded in 1785–95