as in levels
the placement of someone or something in relation to others in a vertical arrangement
jobs in the upper echelons of the company pay quite well indeed
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Recent Examples of echelons
The top echelons of the Islamic Republic boast a deep bench of mostly hard-liners — not surprising, perhaps, for a nation that has braced for attack for years, if not decades.
—
Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2026
The show follows Wiig’s wannabe patrician Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, who is hell-bent on becoming the belle of 1960’s Palm Beach by elbowing her way into the upper echelons of Florida’s most exclusive beach club, the Palm Royale.
—Jack Dunn, Variety, 3 Mar. 2026
Since 1992, when the first of Hoshoryu’s countrymen began competing, there have been more than seventy Mongolian rikishi, many of whom have dominated sumo’s upper echelons.
—Joshua Hunt, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
Bankman-Fried was a longtime supporter of progressive causes and is the son of two Stanford law professors who carried considerable influence in the upper echelons of the Democratic Party.
—Leo Schwartz, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
Tracking the resignations, firings and investigations The Justice Department’s release of millions of files related to Jeffrey Epstein has shaken the upper echelons of power across the globe.
—Kayla Hayempour, NBC news, 23 Feb. 2026
Once the domain of film students and YouTubers, crowdfunding an independent movie has now reached the upper echelons of Silicon Valley and American politics.
—Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 23 Feb. 2026
If the right thing, there still are questions about why details of the incident took two months to reach the highest echelons of state law enforcement — or become public.
—Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 13 Feb. 2026
These latest files show the range and depth of Epstein's extraordinary reach into the upper echelons of society.
—Diana Paulsen, ABC News, 6 Feb. 2026
Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2026
The show follows Wiig’s wannabe patrician Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, who is hell-bent on becoming the belle of 1960’s Palm Beach by elbowing her way into the upper echelons of Florida’s most exclusive beach club, the Palm Royale.
—Jack Dunn, Variety, 3 Mar. 2026
Since 1992, when the first of Hoshoryu’s countrymen began competing, there have been more than seventy Mongolian rikishi, many of whom have dominated sumo’s upper echelons.
—Joshua Hunt, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
Bankman-Fried was a longtime supporter of progressive causes and is the son of two Stanford law professors who carried considerable influence in the upper echelons of the Democratic Party.
—Leo Schwartz, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
Tracking the resignations, firings and investigations The Justice Department’s release of millions of files related to Jeffrey Epstein has shaken the upper echelons of power across the globe.
—Kayla Hayempour, NBC news, 23 Feb. 2026
Once the domain of film students and YouTubers, crowdfunding an independent movie has now reached the upper echelons of Silicon Valley and American politics.
—Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 23 Feb. 2026
If the right thing, there still are questions about why details of the incident took two months to reach the highest echelons of state law enforcement — or become public.
—Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 13 Feb. 2026
These latest files show the range and depth of Epstein's extraordinary reach into the upper echelons of society.
—Diana Paulsen, ABC News, 6 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for echelons
Noun
-
Chip companies like Broadcom have faced a number of headwinds in recent months, including a shortage of the high bandwidth memory crucial for custom accelerators, and capacity constraints at the most advanced levels of chip manufacturing and packaging.—
Katie Tarasov,
CNBC,
5 Mar. 2026
-
These adjustments, referred to as population controls, are likely to show steep downward revisions to both population and labor-force levels – largely reflecting reduced immigration.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The show portrays devious, cocaine-huffing young bankers climbing the ranks of global finance, and Yasmin—or Yas, for short—has cut the least noble path of all.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Alice’s father is a British government official high in the ranks of Bombay society so her friendship with film star Rochana is frowned on by her strict mother.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Israel also pressed on with near-daily strikes, primarily in southern Lebanon, saying that Hezbollah has been trying to rebuild its positions there, killing nearly 400 people while the ceasefire was in place.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
5 Mar. 2026
-
His positions are left, but his speeches are like butter melting on warm bread.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The discrepancies tended to be largest in lower-income regions, including parts of Africa, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, where there are typically fewer local tide gauges and direct ocean measurements; these places are more reliant on models that perform poorly there.—
Marcos Magaña,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Mar. 2026
-
The fact is that winters used to be colder than this, and in many places in the US, winter is now the fastest-warming season.—
Andrew Freedman,
CNN Money,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Texas dominated many national rankings in the report as well, with the ZIP code encompassing the Dallas suburb of Crandall ranking second on the list and a more urban Dallas ZIP code ranking 10th.—
Faith Bugenhagen,
Austin American Statesman,
28 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Echelons.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/echelons. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
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