marginación
nounCEFR B2
What does “marginación” mean in English?
marginalisation, social exclusion — the process by which individuals or groups are pushed to the margins of society and denied full participation
marginalisation, social exclusion — the process by which individuals or groups are pushed to the margins of society and denied full participation (marginación social)
Example sentences
La marginación social no es un fenómeno natural: es el resultado de decisiones políticas y económicas que concentran los recursos en manos de unos pocos.
Social marginalisation is not a natural phenomenon: it is the result of political and economic decisions that concentrate resources in the hands of a few.
Las políticas de regeneración urbana pretenden revertir décadas de marginación económica en los barrios periféricos.
Urban regeneration policies aim to reverse decades of economic marginalisation in peripheral neighbourhoods.
How to use it
La marginación means 'marginalisation' — the process by which individuals or groups are pushed to the edges of social, economic, or political life, excluded from full participation in society. The word derives from the margin of a page — what is written in the margin is ancillary and ignored. At B2 it is used in sociology, social policy, and journalism: la marginación social, la marginación económica, las zonas de marginación, sufrir/padecer/combatir la marginación. Important: marginación is a structural, systemic process — more severe and deeply embedded than exclusión social. The adjective is marginado/marginada (marginalised person).
Common mistake
Marginación (the systemic structural process of pushing groups to the margins) vs exclusión social (social exclusion — broader, includes any form of being excluded from participation). Marginación implies a more extreme, durable state. Also: don't confuse marginación with discriminación (discrimination — active unequal treatment) — marginación describes the outcome, discriminación describes a mechanism.