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

Hinton has continued to warn publicly that 2026 could bring a new wave of white-collar job losses. — Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026

That was preceded by work in Chicago investigating white-collar misconduct for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and an earlier job investigating police misconduct and homicides in that city. — Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 5 Aug. 2026

Their practices also include administrative law, white-collar defense, commercial litigation and securities litigation, according to the site. — Laura Romero, ABC News, 5 Aug. 2026

Some are trying to use artificial intelligence to replace entry-level jobs as a first step in white-collar automation. — Laurent Belsie, Christian Science Monitor, 29 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1911, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for white-collar

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

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