noun
gathering place; meeting spot
General term for a place where people gather or are brought together. Can be used for informal meeting spots or designated assembly areas.
この公園は近所の子供たちの寄せ場になっている。
This park has become a gathering place for the neighborhood children.
noun
labour camp (Edo period); workhouse for vagrants and criminals
Historical abbreviation of 人足寄場 (にんそくよせば), a forced labour institution established in the Edo period for drifters, petty criminals, and the unemployed.
See also: 人足寄場
江戸時代、無宿者は寄せ場に送られて強制労働に就かされた。
In the Edo period, vagrants were sent to labour camps and put to forced labour.
noun
vaudeville theater; entertainment hall; music hall
A venue for traditional popular entertainment such as rakugo, manzai, magic, and music. Often synonymous with 寄席 (よせ), but 寄せ場 can emphasize the physical location or hall itself.
See also: 寄席
浅草には今でもいくつかの寄せ場が残っている。
Even now, several vaudeville theaters remain in Asakusa.
Compound of 寄せ (from 寄せる, 'to gather') and 場 ('place'). The historical sense is an abbreviation of 人足寄場.