: having more than adequate financial resources : prosperous
a well-to-do family

Examples of well-to-do in a Sentence

a doctor who is now quite well-to-do as a result of his successful medical practice
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
From the start, they were considered fashionable transportation, chosen by well-to-do ladies to pop about or driven for ceremonial use. Will Sabel Courtney, Robb Report, 10 Oct. 2025 Isidore Newman is a well-to-do private school that plays private school opponents, not Class 6A giants. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Oct. 2025 The data skews toward the most well-to-do Americans, given that stock ownership is highly concentrated among the wealthy. Sarah Min, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2025 This assertion that Mary was a child of a well-to-do family might have some historical validity since this text was composed at a time when the poverty and celibacy of the Holy Family had become associated with her nunlike virtue. Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for well-to-do

Word History

First Known Use

1794, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of well-to-do was in 1794

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Well-to-do.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/well-to-do. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

well-to-do

adjective
ˌwel-tə-ˈdü
: having plenty of money and possessions : prosperous

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