Nearby Words
middle class
noun
1.
a class of people intermediate between the classes of higher and lower social rank or standing; the social, economic, cultural class, having approximately average status, income, education, tastes, and the like.
2.
the class traditionally intermediate between the aristocratic class and the laboring class.
3.
an intermediate class.
Origin:
1760–70
1760–70
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Middle class
is always a great word to know.
So is zedonk. Does it mean:
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| the offspring of a zebra and a donkey. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To middle class
Collins
World English Dictionary
| middle class | |
| —n | |
| 1. | lower class upper class Compare working class Also called: bourgeoisie a social stratum that is not clearly defined but is positioned between the lower and upper classes. It consists of businessmen, professional people, etc, along with their families, and is marked by bourgeois values |
| —adj | |
| 2. | of, relating to, or characteristic of the middle class |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
middle class
1766 (n.); as an adj., "characteristic of the middle class" (depreciative) it dates from 1893.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
middle class definition
A social and economic class composed of those more prosperous than the poor, or lower class, and less wealthy than the upper class. Middle class is sometimes loosely used to refer to the bourgeoisie. In the United States and other industrial countries, the term is often applied to white-collar, as opposed to blue-collar, workers.
Note: Values commonly associated with the middle class include a desire for social respectability and material wealth and an emphasis on the family and education.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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