tenement
noun
ten·e·ment
ˈte-nə-mənt 
1
2
: any of various forms of corporeal property (such as land) or incorporeal property that is held by one person from another
3
: dwelling
Examples of tenement in a Sentence
an exhibit of pictures showing the tenements of the New York City neighborhood of Hell's Kitchen during the 1920s
Recent Examples on the Web
At the same time, the Lower East Side increasingly hosts a population of pricey restaurants, little boutiques, and buyers and renters younger than 40 whose great-grandparents might have lived in tenements on those same blocks.
—
Frederick Peters, Forbes.com, 2 Apr. 2025
The courtyard was essential, a way for mostly Jewish immigrants to replace the tenement’s narrow, stinking air shaft with a form of genuinely gracious living.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 23 Jan. 2025
In the 19th century, greedy landlords in New York could rent tenements with poor lighting, inadequate ventilation and no indoor bathrooms.
—Christopher Elliott, USA TODAY, 3 Jan. 2025
The latest is Bunny, a freewheeling ensemble comedy set in an East Village tenement inhabited by hustlers, stoners, party girls, landlords, Wall Street bros and not one but two dead bodies.
—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tenement
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Frederick Peters, Forbes.com, 2 Apr. 2025
The courtyard was essential, a way for mostly Jewish immigrants to replace the tenement’s narrow, stinking air shaft with a form of genuinely gracious living.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 23 Jan. 2025
In the 19th century, greedy landlords in New York could rent tenements with poor lighting, inadequate ventilation and no indoor bathrooms.
—Christopher Elliott, USA TODAY, 3 Jan. 2025
The latest is Bunny, a freewheeling ensemble comedy set in an East Village tenement inhabited by hustlers, stoners, party girls, landlords, Wall Street bros and not one but two dead bodies.
—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tenement
Cite this Entry
“Tenement.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tenement. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tenement
noun
ten·e·ment
ˈten-ə-mənt
1
2
: dwelling
Legal Definition
tenement
noun
ten·e·ment
ˈte-nə-mənt
1
a
: any of various forms of property (as land) that is held by one person from another
b
: an estate in property
2
: dwelling
Etymology
Anglo-French, from Old French, from Medieval Latin tenementum, from Latin tenēre to hold
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