social class

noun

plural social classes

: a group of people sharing the same social or socioeconomic status : class sense 2a

The well-to-do WTUL [=Women's Trade Union League] volunteers who joined striking New York City shirtwaist workers in 1909 had used their elegant attire to convey the fact that no woman, whatever her social class, could ignore the hardships endured by clothing workers in America.

—Ellen Cain

Her research explores the use and abuse of diversity and inclusion policy as a form of reputation management, and how social class influences access to and career progression within 'elite' occupations.

—Queen Mary University of London

The eight women denied being witches, but Mary was believed. She was 18, pretty, educated and from a higher social class.

—Martina Devlin

Examples of social class in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The research suggests that to consume or to dream of consuming creates illusions of belonging to a different social class. —Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025

In The Bride of Lammermoor, Scots and English denote social class. —Rachel Ashcroft july 7, Literary Hub, 7 July 2025

The revolutionary focus was, and remains today, on the rights of the individual — not the state, not the monarch, not a corporate entity, not a particular economic or social class, and certainly not the military. —Arthur I. Cyr, Chicago Tribune, 2 July 2025

And learning about cuisine also means better understanding social classes, international relations, and how much ancient people had in common with Egyptians today. —The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 25 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1794, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for social class

• candlemas
• fiberglass
• fibreglass
• hourglass
• isinglass
• lemongrass
• martinmas
• orchardgrass
• overpass
• plexiglas
• plexiglass
• sassafras