squatter
Americannoun
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a person or thing that squats.
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a person who settles on land or occupies property without title, right, or payment of rent.
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a person who settles on land under government regulation, in order to acquire title.
noun
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a person who occupies property or land to which he has no legal title
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(formerly) a person who occupied a tract of land, esp pastoral land, as tenant of the Crown
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a farmer of sheep or cattle on a large scale
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(in New Zealand) a 19th-century settler who took up large acreage on a Crown lease
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of squatter
Explanation
A squatter is someone who lives on unoccupied land or in a vacant building without permission from the owner. Some squatters move into abandoned homes because they have nowhere else to live, while others are part of social movements that see squatting as a response to political and economic systems that have made housing inaccessible for many. While in some places it's a crime to be a squatter, other jurisdictions view squatting as a conflict between the squatter and the owner. An earlier definition of squatter was "settler who doesn't (yet) have a title to the land."
Vocabulary lists containing squatter
Trash
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Patron Saints of Nothing
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for March 12–March 18, 2022
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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.
“At least I eat sometimes,” said Cedric Mnisi, 39, who lives in a squatter camp nearby.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 29, 2025
In “The Lady in the Van,” the tragedy of Smith’s odorous squatter Mary Shepherd is revealed only after her surprisingly touching death.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 27, 2024
Once upon a time, on June 15, 1859, 27-year-old Lyman Cutlar, a squatter on the island, discovered a pig pillaging his potatoes.
From Seattle Times • May 16, 2024
The other squatter, dressed in a bucket hat, face covering and carrying a skateboard, left in the opposite direction on foot.
From BBC • Apr. 19, 2024
Scott said, “If I am going to help you I must be one of you,” and he proceeded to move to the squatter camp and start a congregation there.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
