tent city

noun

plural tent cities
: a collection of many tents set up in an area to provide usually temporary shelter (as for people who don't have a permanent place of residence)
Tent cities of displaced homeowners have sprung up …Matt Woolsey
Anti-sweatshop protesters at FSU pitched a tent city last March to demand that the school join the Workers Rights Consortium …Meline Toumani et al.

Examples of tent city in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Columbia became the epicenter for pro-Palestinian protests last spring when a pro-Palestinian encampment launched a wave of copycat tent cities across American college campuses. Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2025 Last year, city workers fenced off another old tent city site by the Dan Ryan Expressway. Caroline Kubzansky, Chicago Tribune, 21 Feb. 2025 Divided into 25 sections and spreading over 15 square miles, the tent city also has housing, roads, electricity and water, communication towers and 11 hospitals. Fox News, 13 Jan. 2025 Authorities have built a gigantic tent city on the banks of the rivers to accommodate the millions of pilgrims and tourists attending the festival -- equipped with 3,000 kitchens, 150,000 toilets, roads, electricity, water, communication towers and 11 hospitals, according to the Associated Press. Jon Haworth, ABC News, 29 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for tent city

Word History

First Known Use

1838, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tent city was in 1838

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Cite this Entry

“Tent city.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tent%20city. Accessed 16 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

tent city

noun
: a group of many tents set up to provide usually temporary shelter (as for displaced or homeless people)
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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