public housing

American  

noun

1. housing owned or operated by a government and usually offered at low rent to people with low incomes.

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Etymology

Origin of public housing

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

He wants to build more public housing when there’s no natural gas in many current buildings.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 23, 2026

She still lives in the same public housing complex where she raised the filmmaker and his siblings as a single mother.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 30, 2026

He wants to increase the number of bike lanes, parks and green walking paths, as well as improve public housing in a capital of 2 million people where rent is often prohibitive.

From Barron's • Mar. 15, 2026

A black child among mostly Puerto Rican neighbors in public housing in Bethlehem, Pa., young Oliver was raised by his single mother.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

The Court ruled in 2002 that, under federal law, public housing tenants can be evicted regardless of whether they had knowledge of or participated in alleged criminal activity.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander