gentrification
gentrification Lexical Profile
gentrification Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The process whereby the character of a poor or working-class urban area is changed by wealthier people moving in, renovating housing, and attracting new businesses, often displacing original residents in the process.
"Rapid gentrification in the historic district led to rising rents that forced many long-time family businesses to close."
The process of making something more refined, polite, or appealing to middle-class and upper-class tastes.
"Critics argued that the gentrification of the local music festival pricing and amenities alienated its original grassroots audience."
Word Nuance & Usage
While sometimes used neutrally in urban planning to describe neighborhood investment, 'gentrification' frequently carries a critical or negative connotation regarding the displacement of lower-income residents and the loss of local culture.
• Rhymes for gentrification
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in 1964 by British sociologist Ruth Glass from the noun 'gentry' (people of good social position, from Old French 'genterise') plus the suffix '-fication', to describe the influx of middle-class residents into working-class London districts.