as in aristocratic
being or characteristic of a person who has an offensive air of superiority and tends to ignore or disdain anyone regarded as inferior
the complacent, elitist attitude of the members at that suburban country club
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in snob
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of elitist
Brian Winter, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Ellison and Weiss are trying to save CBS News from the mess left by Chung and her successors where virtually no one trusts or believes the elitist press corps.
—Paul Bedard, The Washington Examiner, 8 Dec. 2025
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 20 July 2025
That isn’t a problem, though, because true Mario Kart elitists understand that the first game in the series, Super Mario Kart, remains Nintendo’s pinnacle.
—Luke Winkie, Vulture, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for elitist
Adjective
By partly neutralizing criticism that its leaders are elitist or antidemocratic, the right has been able to focus on issues that play to its strengths.
—Brian Winter, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Ellison and Weiss are trying to save CBS News from the mess left by Chung and her successors where virtually no one trusts or believes the elitist press corps.
—Paul Bedard, The Washington Examiner, 8 Dec. 2025
Noun
He’s known for brash takes on politics and appears to relish taking down moralists and elitists.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 20 July 2025
That isn’t a problem, though, because true Mario Kart elitists understand that the first game in the series, Super Mario Kart, remains Nintendo’s pinnacle.
—Luke Winkie, Vulture, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for elitist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elitist
Adjective
-
Under the law, the remaining earls, viscounts and dukes who inherited their seats in the chamber along with their aristocratic titles will leave Parliament for good when the current session concludes this spring.—
Peter Weber,
TheWeek,
12 Mar. 2026
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On Tuesday night, members of the upper chamber dropped objections to legislation passed by the House of Commons ousting dozens of dukes, earls and viscounts who inherited seats in Parliament along with their aristocratic titles.—
Jill Lawless,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
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For design lovers and many coffee snobs, the vessel makes the drink.—
Kate McGregor,
Architectural Digest,
6 Mar. 2026
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Terroir doesn’t just belong to wine snobs, because apparently Ethiopia owns it.—
John Noakes,
Hartford Courant,
31 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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This is an organization that can be frustratingly set in its ways and arrogant in its belief that there’s no better way.—
Jeff Zrebiec,
New York Times,
10 Mar. 2026
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Planning for more than 11 contests out of Dobbins, something only produced twice over his first six NFL seasons, isn’t just arrogant.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Set in 1969 Palm Beach, the Apple TV series follows Kristen Wiig’s Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, a spry social climber eager to infiltrate high society.—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
7 Jan. 2026
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In classic Brooksian fashion, this simple succession plan becomes complicated by a potential scandal involving her social climber husband (Jack Lowden), the sudden return of her womanizing father (Woody Harrelson), and, well, Ella McCay’s own stubbornly idealistic personality.—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
10 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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It’s been broadly debated whether the novel actually is a love story between the snobbish Cathy and the glowering Heathcliff.—
Emily Zemler,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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These page-turning stories will put characters like Pride and Prejudice’s snobbish Caroline Bingley to the modern descendant of Sense and Sensibility’s Eliza Williams at center stage in elevated fan fiction for Janeites.—
Lizz Schumer,
PEOPLE,
16 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Elitist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elitist. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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