non-white

1 of 2

adjective

ˌnän-ˈ(h)wīt 

variants or less commonly nonwhite

1

: not of a white race (see race entry 1 sense 1a)

non-white immigrants

non-white Alaskans

2

: not of the color white

… I was standing at the very top of the ladder and stretching to paint over the last non-white spot on the ceiling …

—Xaver Bayer

non-white

2 of 2

noun

variants or less commonly nonwhite

plural non-whites also nonwhites

: a person who is not of a white race (see race entry 1 sense 1a)

Examples of non-white in a Sentence

Noun

The program is even less popular among nonwhites.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Meanwhile, the state — along with the country — is becoming more diverse and non-white, Kopko says. —Mike D'onofrio, Axios, 29 Jan. 2025

In this year’s election, virtually every demographic in the country shifted toward Trump—younger women, unmarried women, non-white women, indeed all women; Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and Arab Americans. —Matthew Karp, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025

Noun

Share [Findings] Drivers of fancy cars yield to pedestrians less often than drivers of humble cars, and still less if the pedestrians are non-white men. —Kyle Paoletta, Harpers Magazine, 29 Mar. 2023

But the lead acts — Bad Bunny, Blackpink, and Frank Ocean — also make history as the first group of 100% non-white Coachella headliners. —Oscar Hartzog, Rolling Stone, 28 Mar. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1806, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1864, in the meaning defined above