Define parvenu

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A parvenu is a person who is a relative newcomer to a high-ranking socioeconomic class. The word is borrowed from the French language ; it is the past participle of the verb parvenir to reach, to arrive, to manage to do something. The word parvenu typically describes a person who recently ascended the social ladder , especially a nouveau riche or "new money" individual. The famous Margaret Brown , who survived the sinking of the Titanic in , was portrayed as a "new money" individual, most notably in the "climbing social classes" musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown , because of her impoverished Irish immigrant roots and lack of social pedigree. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a parvenu as: "A person from a humble background who has rapidly gained wealth or an influential social position; a nouveau riche; an upstart, a social climber.

Define parvenu

French has been generous in providing us with terms for obscure folks who suddenly strike it rich. In addition to parvenu , French has loaned us nouveau riche , arriviste , and roturier , all of which can describe a rich person of plebeian origins, especially one who is a bit snobby. Those colorful and slightly disparaging terms for the newly moneyed clearly show their French heritage, but it may be harder to see the French background of a term Massachusetts locals once used for coastal merchants made rich through the fishing trade: codfish aristocracy. Codfish comes from Middle English beyond that its origin is a mystery , but aristocracy passed into English via Middle French it is ultimately from Greek aristos , meaning "best". These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'parvenu. Send us feedback about these examples. Accessed 16 Mar. Nglish: Translation of parvenu for Spanish Speakers. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! See Definitions and Examples ». Log In. Synonyms of parvenu. Did you know?

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Define parvenu

A person who has suddenly risen to a higher social and economic class and has not yet gained social acceptance by others in that class. All rights reserved. Copyright , , by Random House, Inc. Switch to new thesaurus. Based on WordNet 3. Mentioned in?

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Register now or log in to access. More Synonyms of parvenu. Collins API. More from Merriam-Webster on parvenu. Pick the best ones! A social climber is a derogatory term that denotes someone who seeks social prominence through aggressive, fawning, or obsequious behavior. Education Homelessness Home-ownership. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! The sentence contains offensive content. Copy Citation. Grammar Patterns. Translations Click on the arrows to change the translation direction. Quiz French confusables. Popular in Wordplay See All. Bourgeoisie Petite Burgher Lower middle class Upper middle class.

French has been generous in providing us with terms for obscure folks who suddenly strike it rich. In addition to parvenu , French has loaned us nouveau riche , arriviste , and roturier , all of which can describe a rich person of plebeian origins, especially one who is a bit snobby.

March 15, Read more. These people, though, had their hands full with the "parvenus", supplying them with enough money, a burden that weighed on the poors backs. Sign up now or Log in. Generally used with the implication that the person concerned is unsuited to the new social position, esp. Video Build your vocabulary. Examples of parvenu in a Sentence. Tools Tools. March 15, Read more. Get Word of the Day daily email! English Examples Translations. We show you how. French English to French. More from Merriam-Webster on parvenu.