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Synonyms

low-rent

American  
[loh-rent] / ˈloʊˈrɛnt /

adjective

  1. Informal. second-rate; bargain-basement.

low-rent British  

adjective

  1. informal cheap and inferior

    low-rent films
"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 low-rent

First recorded in 1975–80

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.

He never married, has no children, no savings and no retirement, does not own a home and is currently unemployed, living in a small apartment in a low-rent area of a large Southern city.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 3, 2026

What used to be a working-class, bohemian, low-rent neighborhood is now one of the most sought-after areas in the city.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 4, 2025

It is a low-rent security unit, kind of the cheapest version.

From Salon • Jun. 4, 2025

With some businesses and wealthier residents of the CBD moving to the more affluent northern suburbs, including the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, old commercial buildings in the city centre were turned into low-rent apartments.

From BBC • Aug. 31, 2023

She provided the safe space of a reading room on the first floor, low-rent lodging upstairs, and an employment bureau to provide leads on jobs.

From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield

Definitions 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.