wetback

[ wet-bak ]

noun

, Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive.

1. a contemptuous term used to refer to a Mexican laborer who enters the U.S. illegally, as by wading the Rio Grande.

wetback

/ ˈwɛtˌbæk /

noun

1. informal.
   a Mexican labourer who enters the US illegally

Word History and Origins

Origin of wetback¹

An Americanism dating back to 1945–50; wet + back ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of wetback¹

C20: illegal immigrants would swim across the Rio Grande river to reach the US