old shanty
1
7.2
- noun
- After years of neglect, the old shanty finally collapsed during a heavy storm.
Examples
-
Peggy lives in the country in an old shanty.
Fiction book (2000) -
Every summer, he visits the old shanty where he spent his childhood vacations.
-
The family struggled to make repairs on their old shanty before winter arrived.
Synonyms
12
6.8
A small rough shelter made from old boards and metal
1
5.3
A house that is in very bad condition and falling apart
1
7.4
A very small run-down house with broken walls and a damaged roof
Antonyms
How Dilapidated
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is straightforwardly compositional: 'shanty' already denotes an improvised, likely dilapidated small dwelling, and 'old' simply modifies it as not new or long-standing. This adjective+noun combination follows regular English composition (and parallels in many languages), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Old shanty may come from a word for a simple wooden hut where workers lived, so imagine a small, rough shelter made quickly from boards. Because those huts were often worn and basic, old shanty now means 'a small, run-down dwelling'.