proletariat
Usually the proletariat . in Marxist theory, the class made up of workers, especially industrial wage earners, who do not possess capital or property and must sell their labor to those who do in order to survive: The call of the proletariat is to overthrow the capitalist mode of production and finally abolish the whole class structure.A dictatorship of the proletariat is the first stage of the revolution.
Usually the proletariat . the class made up of wage earners, especially unskilled or semiskilled workers who earn their living by manual labor, often dependent on daily or casual employment and typically having low levels of education and disposable income; the working class.
the lowest or poorest class of people, possessing no property, especially in ancient Rome.
Origin of proletariat
1Other words from proletariat
- pro·le·tar·i·an, adjective, noun
- non·pro·le·tar·i·at, noun
- Compare bourgeoisie.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for proletariat
/ (ˌprəʊlɪˈtɛərɪət) /
all wage-earners collectively
the lower or working class
(in Marxist theory) the class of wage-earners, esp industrial workers, in a capitalist society, whose only possession of significant material value is their labour
(in ancient Rome) the lowest class of citizens, who had no property
Origin of proletariat
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for proletariat (1 of 2)
[ (proh-luh-tair-ee-uht) ]
In Marxism, the industrial working class, people without property.
[ (proh-luh-tair-ee-uht) ]
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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