non-white

1 of 2

adjective

variants or less commonly nonwhite
1
: not of a white race (see race entry 1 sense 1a)
non-white immigrants
non-white Alaskans
2
: not of the color white
… I was standing at the very top of the ladder and stretching to paint over the last non-white spot on the ceiling …Xaver Bayer

non-white

2 of 2

noun

variants or less commonly nonwhite
plural non-whites also nonwhites
: a person who is not of a white race (see race entry 1 sense 1a)

Examples of non-white in a Sentence

Noun The program is even less popular among nonwhites.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Adjective
Despite accounting for only 36% of total households, non-white households represented 82% of all new household formations in the United States. Isaac Mizrahi, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025 All of these distinctions, rooted in Southern heritage, have resulted in the culmination of a fairly conservative fanbase that often comes into conflict with the show’s non-white cast members. Taylor Crumpton, Essence, 11 Apr. 2025
Noun
Share [Findings] Drivers of fancy cars yield to pedestrians less often than drivers of humble cars, and still less if the pedestrians are non-white men. Kyle Paoletta, Harpers Magazine, 29 Mar. 2023 But the lead acts — Bad Bunny, Blackpink, and Frank Ocean — also make history as the first group of 100% non-white Coachella headliners. Oscar Hartzog, Rolling Stone, 28 Mar. 2023 See All Example Sentences for non-white

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1806, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1864, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of non-white was in 1806

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Cite this Entry

“Non-white.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/non-white. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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