bourgeois

1
[ boor-zhwah, boor-zhwah, boo-zhwah; French boor-zhwa ]
See synonyms for bourgeois on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. having, reflecting, or relating to conventional tastes, opinions, and values believed to be determined mainly by a concern for respectability and material wealth; middle-class: He lived a bohemian lifestyle frowned upon by bourgeois morality.Bored with bourgeois suburbia and starved for authenticity, these progressive millennials are eager to participate in something challenging and important.

  2. belonging to, characteristic of, or consisting of the middle class, especially as viewed in Marxist theory; concerned with ownership of property and maintenance of the status quo, and having or catering to interests opposed to those of the lower or working class: Soviet propaganda treated Democrats and Republicans as interchangeable parts of a bourgeois power structure.

noun,plural bour·geois.
  1. a person with conventional or banal tastes and opinions believed to be determined mainly by a concern for respectability and material wealth: In this movie he portrays a stuffy bourgeois who plays golf and reads all the right business magazines.

  2. a member of the middle class, especially as viewed in Marxist theory.

  1. a shopkeeper or merchant.

Origin of bourgeois

1
First recorded in 1555–65; from Middle French; Old French borgeis burgess

Words Nearby bourgeois

Other definitions for bourgeois (2 of 3)

bourgeois2
[ ber-jois ]

nounPrinting.
  1. a size of type approximately 9-point, between brevier and long primer.

Origin of bourgeois

2
First recorded in 1815–25; perhaps from a printer so named

Other definitions for Bourgeois (3 of 3)

Bourgeois
[ boor-zhwah, boor-zhwah, boo-zhwah; French boor-zhwa ]

noun
  1. Lé·on Vic·tor Au·guste [ley-awnveek-tawroh-gyst], /leɪˈɔ̃ vikˈtɔr oʊˈgyst/, 1851–1925, French statesman: Nobel Peace Prize 1920.

  2. Louise, 1911–2010, U.S. sculptor, born in France.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use bourgeois in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bourgeois (1 of 3)

bourgeois1

/ (ˈbʊəʒwɑː, bʊəˈʒwɑː) often derogatory /


nounplural -geois
  1. a member of the middle class, esp one regarded as being conservative and materialistic or (in Marxist thought) a capitalist exploiting the working class

  2. a mediocre, unimaginative, or materialistic person

adjective
  1. characteristic of, relating to, or comprising the middle class

  2. conservative or materialistic in outlook: a bourgeois mentality

  1. (in Marxist thought) dominated by capitalists or capitalist interests

Origin of bourgeois

1
C16: from Old French borjois, burgeis burgher, citizen, from bourg town; see burgess

Derived forms of bourgeois

  • bourgeoise (ˈbʊəʒwɑːz, bʊəˈʒwɑːz), fem n

British Dictionary definitions for bourgeois (2 of 3)

bourgeois2

/ (bəˈdʒɔɪs) /


noun
  1. (formerly) a size of printer's type approximately equal to 9 point

Origin of bourgeois

2
C19: perhaps from its size, midway between long primer and brevier

British Dictionary definitions for Bourgeois (3 of 3)

Bourgeois

/ (French burʒwa) /


noun
  1. Léon Victor Auguste . (leɔ̃ viktɔr oɡyst). 1851–1925, French statesman; first chairman of the League of Nations: Nobel peace prize 1920

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012