aristocracy

noun

ar·​is·​toc·​ra·​cy ˌa-rə-ˈstä-krə-sē 

ˌer-ə-

plural aristocracies

1

: government by the best individuals or by a small privileged class

2

a

: a government in which power is vested (see vest entry 2 sense 1a) in a minority consisting of those believed to be best qualified

b

: a state with such a government

3

: a governing body or upper class usually made up of a hereditary nobility

a member of the British aristocracy

4

: a class or group of people believed to be superior (as in rank, wealth, or intellect)

an intellectual aristocracy

Synonyms

• nobility
• gentry
• elite

Examples of aristocracy in a Sentence

a member of the aristocracy

at one time in China only the aristocracy could own land

Recent Examples on the Web

But Collins, now the head of special collections and archives at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, noticed that the text was written in Old French, the language used by aristocracy and England’s royal court after the Norman Conquest in 1066. —Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 9 May 2025

A little biographical information: He was born in 1896 into the decaying Bourbon aristocracy. —Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 7 Apr. 2025

Republican purists wanted a simple, technical training school that kept the costs low and, more importantly, kept the officer corps from evolving into an aristocracy. —Ryan Shaw / Made By History, TIME, 24 Feb. 2025

According to Back, this intellectual aristocracy persisted until the dilution of Bloomsbury by new members from outside the family lineage. —Jenny Noyce, JSTOR Daily, 14 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French & Late Latin; Middle French aristocratie, from Late Latin aristocratia, from Greek aristokratia, from aristos best + -kratia -cracy

First Known Use

1561, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for aristocracy

• meritocracy
• autocracy
• bureaucracy
• democracy
• hypocrisy
• plutocracy
• theocracy

Kids Definition

aristocracy

noun

ar·​is·​toc·​ra·​cy ˌar-ə-ˈstäk-rə-sē 

plural aristocracies

1

: a government run by a small class of people

2

a

: an upper class that is usually based on birth and is richer and more powerful than the rest of society

b

: persons thought to be better than the rest of the community