Dictionary.com

wetback

[ wet-bak ]
/ ˈwɛtˌbæk /

noun Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive.

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

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Origin of wetback

An Americanism dating back to 1945–50; wet + back1

Words nearby wetback

West Yorkshire, wet, weta, wet AMD, wet-and-dry-bulb thermometer, wetback, wet bar, wet behind the ears, Wetbike, wet blanket, wet-bulb thermometer
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for wetback

wetback
/ (ˈwɛtˌbæk) /

noun

US informal, offensive a Mexican labourer who enters the US illegally

Word Origin for wetback

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