Synonyms

ghost town

American

noun

a town permanently abandoned by its inhabitants, as because of a business decline or because a nearby mine has been worked out.

ghost town British

noun

a deserted town, esp one in the western US that was formerly a boom town

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

ghost town Cultural

A town, especially a boomtown in the old American West, that has been completely abandoned and deserted: “If you drive through the desert, you can still see the main street of Dry Gulch, a ghost town.”

ghost town Idioms

A once thriving town that has been completely abandoned, as in Many of the old mining communities are ghost towns now. This idiom implies that there are no living people left in town. [First half of 1900s]

Etymology

Origin of ghost town

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Oakland, Calif., couple were at the farewell brunch when people were advised to shelter in place, and he said the city became a ghost town.

From The Wall Street Journal

“This is a place with a lot of history and culture. But the sad fact is this: We are now a ghost town.”

From Los Angeles Times

But it has become a ghost town in recent months.

From Barron's

In recent months, that office has become a ghost town.

From Barron's

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023