1. a small, dirty, poorly built dwelling

Examples

• The family lived in a cramped hovel with a leaking roof.
• After losing his job, he was forced to move into a hovel on the outskirts of town.
• The abandoned hovel was barely standing after years of neglect.
• She couldn’t believe people actually lived in such a hovel.
• The charity worked to replace hovels with proper housing.
• The old hovel had no running water or electricity.