blue-collar

adjective

blue-col·​lar ˈblü-ˈkä-lər 

1

: of, relating to, or constituting the class of wage earners whose duties call for the wearing of work clothes or protective clothing compare white-collar

2

: having characteristics associated with blue-collar workers: such as

a

: having, showing, or appealing to unpretentious or unsophisticated tastes

… a new blue-collar serial … woven around a minor-league baseball team …

—Steven Flax

b

: dependable and hard-working rather than showy or spectacular

a blue-collar athlete

Examples of blue-collar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

With ruthless competitors who will stop at nothing to dethrone and destroy them, the Whitlocks are a blue-collar dynasty at the edge of extinction – and the old king is fighting to hold onto the crown. — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 14 July 2026

Norwegians who are better off are willing to give up some income to ensure that people in blue-collar jobs get by. — Nicholas D. Kristof, Mercury News, 14 July 2026

Communities as distinct as Mexicans and Peruvians are overrepresented in blue-collar professions compared with non-Latino Americans. — Jack Herrera, New Yorker, 14 July 2026

Over the July 4th holiday weekend, my colleagues on the small business desk published this fascinating story about how millennials are buying up blue-collar, brick-and-mortar businesses to AI-proof their futures. — Maggie McGrath, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1929, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for blue-collar

• footballer
• installer
• caller
• choler
• collar
• crawler
• dollar
• faller
• haller
• hauler
• holler
• scholar

Kids Definition

blue-collar

adjective

ˈblü-ˈkäl-ər

: of or relating to the class of workers whose duties require work clothes