shantytown.

A settlement made largely of makeshift dwellings, often with limited infrastructure.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• expanding shantytown
• edge-of-city shantytown
• shantytown residents

On the page

The shantytown organized its own evening classes because the nearest school was full.

One water connection served dozens of families in the shantytown.

Officials marked the shantytown for demolition without consulting its residents.

Usage notes

Primary category: setting. Describes precarious housing, not the character of residents. Can be stigmatizing; do not imply that informal communities lack organization or culture. Plural: shantytowns. No other inflection applies to this noun.