squatter
1 of 2verb
squat·ter ˈskwä-tər 
squattered; squattering; squatters
intransitive verb
: to go along through or as if through water
ducks squattering to the shore
squatter
2 of 2noun
: one that squats: such as
a
: one that settles on property without right or title or payment of rent
b
: one that settles on public land under government regulation with the purpose of acquiring title
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 1 June 2020 Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 23 Aug. 2022 In the squatter colony beneath me several women crouched before their huts, cooking breakfast on kerosene stoves. New York Times, 12 July 2022 Authorities filed murder charges against a resident of the same building who had purportedly threatened to kill the squatter for breaking into his apartment. Alan Judd, ajc, 13 June 2022 For days when a brand new whitehead decides to claim squatter's rights on your face, plop one of these hydrocolloid patches on. ELLE, 23 June 2022 The only noticeable difference is that a slim, narrow black marking on the earbud is replaced by a shorter, squatter black lozenge. David Phelan, Forbes, 5 June 2022 Swapping in butter could lead to a squatter cake with a less velvety crumb. Washington Post, 25 Apr. 2022 Often at the center of these ashen expanses was a single shack inhabited by a squatter. Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2022 The law firm, says Josh Gerben, founder of Gerben Intellectual Property, is likely to be fronting for someone else, perhaps a squatter who hopes to trademark the name, Uncle Vanya, and then sell it to a McDonald’s wannabe in Russia. Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2022 See More
Verb
Spenard is named for the bootlegger and squatter Joe Spenard. David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 1 June 2020 Noun
Keep records of legal occupancy — such as a lease or utility bills — in case the tenant gets accused of being a squatter. Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 23 Aug. 2022 In the squatter colony beneath me several women crouched before their huts, cooking breakfast on kerosene stoves. New York Times, 12 July 2022 Authorities filed murder charges against a resident of the same building who had purportedly threatened to kill the squatter for breaking into his apartment. Alan Judd, ajc, 13 June 2022 For days when a brand new whitehead decides to claim squatter's rights on your face, plop one of these hydrocolloid patches on. ELLE, 23 June 2022 The only noticeable difference is that a slim, narrow black marking on the earbud is replaced by a shorter, squatter black lozenge. David Phelan, Forbes, 5 June 2022 Swapping in butter could lead to a squatter cake with a less velvety crumb. Washington Post, 25 Apr. 2022 Often at the center of these ashen expanses was a single shack inhabited by a squatter. Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2022 The law firm, says Josh Gerben, founder of Gerben Intellectual Property, is likely to be fronting for someone else, perhaps a squatter who hopes to trademark the name, Uncle Vanya, and then sell it to a McDonald’s wannabe in Russia. Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Verb
imitative
First Known Use
Verb
1785, in the meaning defined above
Noun
1788, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing squatter
Legal Definition
squatter
noun
squat·ter
ˈskwä-tər
: a person who occupies real property without a claim of right or title
Note: In most jurisdictions, a squatter cannot gain title to land through adverse possession because adverse possession requires possession of the property under a claim of right or color of title.
squatters
noun
as in colonists
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- colonists
- newcomers
- foreigners
- aliens
- refugees
- pioneers
- nonnatives
- pilgrims
- immigrants
- noncitizens
- émigrés
- settlers
- migrants
- deportees
- expatriates
- emigrants
- evacuees
- exiles
- repatriates
- emigrés
- migrators
- incomers
- trekkers
- defectors
- relocatees
- in-migrants
- out-migrants
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- residents
- inhabitants
- natives
- citizens
- aborigines
- nationals
- nonimmigrants
- habitants