deghettoize means to remove from a ghetto and integrate into the mainstream. It carries an Arena rating of 1097, earned across 332 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, deghettoize ranks #1,604 of 13,219 for Most Satisfying to Say, #1,640 of 13,219 for The Improbable, #1,969 of 13,219 for Most Incisive Words, #2,669 of 13,219 for Most Malleable Words.
Why “deghettoize” is a great word
DEGHETTOIZE — [Verb] To remove a person, group, or institution from a ghetto or isolated condition and integrate them into the mainstream. From the English prefix de- (indicating reversal or removal) + ghettoize (to place or confine in a ghetto), itself from ghetto (a segregated area, especially for a minority group). Unlike integrate, which describes a broad process of equal participation, or assimilate, which often implies a one-sided cultural absorption, to deghettoize is the specific, structural act of dismantling a wall—whether of brick, policy, or prejudice. It is the ceremonial breaking of a gate, the scheduled demolition of a perimeter fence, and the redrawing of a city map to connect two severed street grids. It is the hopeful, administrative belief that space dictates destiny.
Etymology
From de- + ghettoize.
verb
- To remove from a ghetto and integrate into the mainstream.“Wherever they turned there were agencies that moved to deghettoize them, secularize them, enlighten them.”
Words closest in meaning
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