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plebeian 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of plebeiannext
as in low
belonging to the class of people of low social or economic rank wondered what the people at the country club would think of his plebeian origins

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

plebeian

2 of 2

noun

as in proletarian

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of plebeian
Adjective
This one is about a regular old guy, a hedge knight in the plebeian population of Westeros, just trying to get by in a world that isn't kind to the common and poor. — Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 13 Jan. 2026 Once upon a time, a doddering old man spoke of a dream about a united city in this empire’s capital, where every man, woman, and child could walk its streets and live a good life regardless of their patrician or plebeian birthright. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 22 Nov. 2024
Noun
So much for plebeians like myself, who tended to plants at a local nursery for minimum wage at 17. — Chris Branch, New York Times, 29 May 2025 But an unpleasant incident with a public transit plebeian leads Leighton to ponder the direction of her life. — Rachel Seo, Variety, 2 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for plebeian
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plebeian
  1. low
  2. proletarian
  3. lower-class
  4. commoner
  5. humble
  6. pleb
  7. ignoble
  8. prole
Adjective
  • Each team's lone victory this season came in blowout fashion over West Georgia of the lower-tier Football Championship Subdivision.
    — Michael Harley, Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The result was a masterclass in color and texture worn with a high-low attitude.
    — Minty Mellon, Vogue, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of low
Noun
  • Now artists, who had only recently emerged as solo entrepreneurs, reverted to their erstwhile status as proletarians—indeed, as migrant workers.
    — Diedrich Diederichsen, Artforum, 1 Dec. 2025
  • Fundamentally, the proletarian forfeits not so much income as individual freedom and the sovereignty of his or her class.
    — Benjamin Kunkel, Harpers Magazine, 28 Mar. 2025
Definition of proletarian
Adjective
  • But new research is shedding light on what life was like for middle- and lower-class residents.
    — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
  • The franchise centers around a dystopian nation called Panem, where rich and authoritarian leaders force twelve lower-class districts to submit two children to fight in a deadly, and televised, battle every year.
    — Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE, 11 July 2026
Definition of lower-class
Noun
  • The former couple had broken up in 1955, as Margaret weighed losing her royal income and claim to the throne against marrying Townsend (a commoner and divorcé).
    — Bailey Bujnosek, InStyle, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Born in 1937, his life was marked by war, exile, his love for the commoner Sonja, his long apprenticeship as crown prince, and, finally, more than three decades on the throne.
    — Stefania Conrieri, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of commoner
Adjective
  • Ironically, the British school uniform has entirely humble origins.
    — Eva Wolchover, Vanity Fair, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Leather was made to feel more delicate, while other humble materials were guided by leather’s permanence and authority.
    — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of humble
Noun
  • Instead of following his gut like some unenlightened pleb, Patrick trusts his spleen and his spleen alone.
    — Laura Bradley, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2025
  • But because these monsters have yet to develop any fungal armor, runners are susceptible to gunshots, knives, and any other weaponry that would take out your average pleb.
    — Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 20 Jan. 2023
Definition of pleb
Adjective
  • The prizes’ name is a reference to Ignatius (Ig) Nobel—a fictional character said to be a distant cousin of Swedish inventor and industrialist Alfred Nobel, for whom the Nobel Prizes are named—and is also a pun on the word ignoble.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Aug. 2026
  • This is an ignoble war making monsters and fools out of its participants, and against the uncontrollable weapons that are dragons, everyone’s resolve is crumbling.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 18 June 2026
Definition of ignoble
Noun
  • In Jodie Foster’s satire-cum-thriller, George Clooney plays a Jim Cramer-ish TV finance guru whose bullish promotion of one stock has led desperate prole Jack O’Connell to lose his life savings, leading to a hostage standoff in the TV studio.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2025
Definition of prole

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Cite this Entry

“Plebeian.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plebeian. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on plebeian

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about plebeian

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