1. conglomeration of predominantly chinese businesses and culture.
(Other ethnicities have other "districts," for example, Little Tokyo would be comprised of mostly japanese businesses.)

2. A drama thriller made in 1974 directed by Roman Polanski and staring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway about drought-ridden '30s L.A., corruption, weird family relations, and a divorce specializing private detective; spawned the phrase "it's Chinatown" - the phrase is used to refer to a situation that is impossible to deal with due to the fact that it is the result of issues imbedded in a tangled web of too many people's personal problems and/or ambitions, greed, or deviance, and that there is nothing one person on the outside of that web can do to set everything right because the whole situation is too fucked up.
1. Let's go to Chinatown for lunch.

2. Forget it - it's Chinatown.
by Beefy McRib May 12, 2007
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A magical place where you can get anything you want but not quite for under $20.
Bootleg Gucci bags, bootleg Gucci belts, bootleg Gucci sunglasses, all available at your local Chinatown!
by shaznack May 30, 2005
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A place where a vast majority of the people who live there are Asian (not always chinese)
Hacienda Heights, Rowland Heights, Diamond Bar, Wallnut are all Chinatowns or possibly one large "Chinatowne". I live in Chinatown
by The Leader November 27, 2004
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A place that is so damn different from the real China. Especailly the 'AUTHENTIC CHINESE FOOD'.

Visitors should never claim that they know any bit about China if they've only been to Chinatown.
Husband: Hon, let's go to Chinatown for our anniversary?
Wife: hdu! Save it and take me to China!
by shydhz February 16, 2010
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Chinatown is a district in San Francisco. You can get anything if you pay enough for it. Swords, knives, lighters. The Chinese dudes behind the counters will always try to squeeze you money out of you, so deal with them with the word "No."
A place where you can throw firecrackers at old people without getting in much trouble. Its also full of skanky little Chinese restaurants. A lot of weird shit happens in Chinatown.
Chinatown
by Wesayhellahere April 20, 2011
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Cheap Cheap goods- in both senses of the word.
Person #1: "Wow!!! I got this paper lantern for a buck down at Chinatown!!"

Person #2: "I got a dead cat for $5."

Person #3: "Hell, you can buy the whole joint for a hundred."
by Angry_Afro December 21, 2010
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From the 1974 Roman Polanski film written by Robert Towne and starring Jack Nicholson. Chinatown refers to a situation in which helping makes things worse; an unintended consequence the exact opposite of what was desired; a trauma that keeps repeating itself; a character flaw that keeps re-emerging.
"Aid Syrian rebels and stop Assad? Forget it, the whole region is Chinatown."
by pottergreen October 14, 2013
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