slum

Meaning

Noun

1. (countable, derogatory) A dilapidated neighborhood where many people live in a state of poverty.
2. (slang, uncountable) Inexpensive trinkets awarded as prizes in a carnival game.

Verb

1. (intransitive) To visit a neighborhood of a status below one's own.
2. (UK, dated, intransitive, slang) To saunter about in a disreputable manner.

Synonyms

ghetto

shantytown

shanty town

back street

slum area

hovel

inner city

new town

quarter

rookery

shack

shanty

informal settlements

part of town

skid row

alley house

rear tenement

area in decline

decayed area

rotten place

informal settlement

squatter settlement

skid road

city district

mean alley

crowded

den

district

dump

Translations

favela

Elendsviertel

bidonville

taudis

Slum

achterbuurt

barrio bajo

bidonville

barrio

kenar mahalle

φτωχογειτονιά

quartiere povero

sloppenwijk

Armenviertel

Pronounced as (IPA)

/slʌm/

Etymology

First attested in 1812. originally slang, in the sense "room", especially "backroom", of unknown origin.