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race riot

American  

noun

  1. a riot resulting from animosity or tensions between racial or ethnic groups.


race riot British  

noun

  1. a riot among members of different races in the same community

"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 race riot

An Americanism dating back to 1885–90

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:

Malaysian social media users on Monday reported a slew of posts on short video platform TikTok after the election that mentioned a deadly race riot in Kuala Lumpur on May 13, 1969.

From Reuters Nov. 22, 2022

“If they cannot rely on its intelligence about a pandemic or about who’s responsible for violence during a race riot or the trajectory of a hurricane, what are they there for?”

From New York Times Aug. 19, 2020

The congregation’s building was destroyed in the 1921 race riot, and members rebuilt at the current location seven years later.

From Washington Post Jan. 19, 2020

Mangum took his first Penny Picture portrait in Durham, in 1897, a year before the brutal Wilmington race riot.

From The New Yorker Feb. 14, 2019

After the Detroit race riot in 1943, presidential assistant Jonathan Daniels had organized a committee to deal with racial troubles.

From Integration of the Armed Forces, 1940-1965 by Morris J. MacGregor

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