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.
Construction of a tent city is underway and the center is now reportedly equipped to hold 120 migrants, a far cry from the 30,000 Trump hopes to detain there eventually. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Newsweek, 4 Feb. 2025 That tent city debacle is a blueprint for what not to do. Gerard S. Williams, Sun Sentinel, 15 Jan. 2025 For the third time in six weeks, a fire in Elgin’s tent city destroyed makeshift structures that are part of the homeless encampment along the Fox River. Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 13 Jan. 2025 Around 160,000 tents, 150,000 toilets and a 776-mile (1,249-kilometer) drinking water pipeline have been installed at a temporary tent city covering 4,000 hectares, roughly the size of 7,500 football fields. Aishwarya S Iyer, CNN, 12 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

Dictionary Entries Near tent city

Cite this Entry

“Tent city.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tent%20city. Accessed 10 Feb. 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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