white-collar

adjective

white-col·​lar ˈ(h)wīt-ˈkä-lər 

: of, relating to, or constituting the class of salaried employees whose duties do not call for the wearing of work clothes or protective clothing compare blue-collar

Examples of white-collar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Concerns at this stage are more focused on electricity bills, which threaten to become a benchmark affordability measure like gas pump prices have traditionally been, than the risk to white-collar jobs. —Mark Niquette, Arkansas Online, 15 Dec. 2025

Concerns at this stage are more focused on electricity bills, which threaten to become a benchmark affordability measure like gas-pump prices have traditionally been, than the risk to white-collar jobs. —Mark Niquette, Fortune, 12 Dec. 2025

In North Carolina, Corning has more than 5,000 workers across several manufacturing sites and at its Charlotte headquarters office, home to white-collar workers. —Charlotte Observer, 10 Dec. 2025

This represents the distinction between blue-collar and white-collar workers. —Erin Parish, Miami Herald, 5 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1911, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for white-collar

• eurodollar
• caller
• collar
• crawler
• dollar
• faller
• haller
• hauler
• holler
• scholar
• smaller
• squalor

Kids Definition

white-collar

adjective

ˈhwīt-ˈkäl-ər, 

ˈwīt-

: of, relating to, or being a member of the class of workers (as clerks and salespersons) whose duties do not require the wearing of work clothes