as in parvenu
one who has recently acquired wealth and social position
the town's old money immediately shunned these vulgar arrivistes, who may have had the cash but certainly not the class
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Recent Examples of arriviste
Henry VII was a medieval arriviste, the last man standing after the ruinous Wars of the Roses.
—
Dominic Green, WSJ, 12 Nov. 2022
The underdog pick is Cousin Greg (Nicholas Braun), an ingenuous arriviste who, long-limbed and blunder-prone, provides much of the show’s comic relief.
—Naomi Fry, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2021
Three years ago, Gaga got dinged for being an Oscars arriviste; there could have been a hundred people in the room and not enough of them voted for her in Best Actress.
—Nate Jones, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2021
But every now and then even captains of industry get taken by surprise, and lately they’ve been kept on their toes by a barrage of novel financial vehicles and the arriviste investors driving up their value.
—Emily Stewart, Town & Country, 3 June 2021
See All Example Sentences for arriviste
Dominic Green, WSJ, 12 Nov. 2022
The underdog pick is Cousin Greg (Nicholas Braun), an ingenuous arriviste who, long-limbed and blunder-prone, provides much of the show’s comic relief.
—Naomi Fry, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2021
Three years ago, Gaga got dinged for being an Oscars arriviste; there could have been a hundred people in the room and not enough of them voted for her in Best Actress.
—Nate Jones, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2021
But every now and then even captains of industry get taken by surprise, and lately they’ve been kept on their toes by a barrage of novel financial vehicles and the arriviste investors driving up their value.
—Emily Stewart, Town & Country, 3 June 2021
See All Example Sentences for arriviste
Recent Examples of Synonyms for arriviste
Noun
-
Spurrier, who predominantly sold French vintages, wasn’t expecting anything other than a trouncing for the parvenu.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
25 May 2026
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In 1952, backed by little more than his reputation as a war hero and a fortune staked by his parvenu father, 35-year-old John F. Kennedy swiped a Senate seat from Republican Henry Cabot Lodge, himself a wealthy combat veteran.—
Kevin Mahnken,
The New Republic,
1 Sep. 2020
Noun
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Those upstarts include the corporate card contender Ramp, which is raising funds at a $40 billion valuation, according to the Wall Street Journal.—
Ben Weiss,
Fortune,
27 May 2026
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That sort of sample size is more than enough to infuse the young upstarts with extreme confidence, perhaps countering the massive gap in playoff experience that was supposed to be the Spurs’ undoing.—
Sam Amick,
New York Times,
25 May 2026
Noun
-
Daddy’s little girl and favorite adventurer.—
Audrey Schmidt,
PEOPLE,
4 June 2026
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The Multi-Rack variant also comes with a stain-resistant load area floor and is designed to double as an effective tiny adventurer, DIY transporter, everyday bag carrier and all-around cargo workhorse.—
C.C. Weiss
May 19,
New Atlas,
19 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Arriviste.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/arriviste. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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