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to blockbusting

to blockbusting

8.8
To persuade homeowners to sell by scaring them about the neighborhood to make money
  • verb
  • /ˈblɑkˌbʌstɪŋ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : persuadir a vender
  • Real estate agents were fined for blockbusting in several urban neighborhoods during the 1960s.

Examples

  • They often blockbust neighborhoods to make quick profits.

  • Laws were introduced to prevent blockbusting and protect homeowners from unethical practices.

  • The community organized to stop blockbusting and preserve the neighborhood's diversity.

  • Many agents have blockbusted homes in the area.

  • In the 1970s, some unethical agents engaged in blockbusting, convincing families to sell their homes by spreading false rumors about neighborhood decline.

  • Efforts were made in the community to expose blockbusting, as it unfairly targeted vulnerable homeowners for profit.

  • To combat blockbusting, new regulations were established that mandated transparency in real estate transactions.

Antonyms

236 3.4

To keep having something such as a job or possession

180 3.0

To keep something and not let it go

How Coercive

to coerce
  • Offensive
91 6.4
to intimidate
294 4.9
to blockbusting
  • Archaic
8.8
to pressure
149 4.2
to persuade
472 2.7
to encourage
2.3
to suggest
1.6

Surface Forms

blockbust infinitive
blockbusted past participle
blockbusting present participle
blockbusts third person singular

Etymology

Blockbusting as a verb means persuading homeowners to sell by using fear, literally 'busting' a block and making a neighbourhood break up. The word comes from real estate agents who used rumours and panic to profit, so to blockbust is to push people to sell and change the area's makeup.