as in arriviste
one who has recently acquired wealth and social position
the kind of trophy house that a parvenu buys to prove to people, and to himself, that he has indeed arrived
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of parvenu
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
Raveendran, at least on paper, assumes his place among those parvenus thanks to his effort in internet education.
—Saritha Rai, Fortune, 29 July 2019
Well, rejecting the pretensions of the peacocking parvenu is one of the sweetest pleasures left to the fallen aristocrat.
—Lili Anolik, Vanities, 19 June 2017
Kevin Mahnken, The New Republic, 1 Sep. 2020
Raveendran, at least on paper, assumes his place among those parvenus thanks to his effort in internet education.
—Saritha Rai, Fortune, 29 July 2019
Well, rejecting the pretensions of the peacocking parvenu is one of the sweetest pleasures left to the fallen aristocrat.
—Lili Anolik, Vanities, 19 June 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for parvenu
Noun
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And yet, the digital arrivistes could only gain so much traction with a broader customer base and needed a boost from tie-ins with old-school counterparts.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
20 Apr. 2026
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Certainly there’s a long and distinguished tradition of associating Jewish arrivistes with entrepreneurialism, avarice, and clannishness.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
24 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Last summer, during a show at Pier 17, overlooking the East River, Langley played the part of the humble upstart.—
Kelefa Sanneh,
New Yorker,
8 May 2026
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And another launch upstart, Rocket Lab, is trying to nab smaller launch contracts that previously would have gone to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 with its own Electron and soon-to-debut Neutron rockets.—
Ramin Skibba,
Scientific American,
4 May 2026
Noun
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Vandelli thinks Stilley is nouveau riche; Stilley thinks Vandelli is a bully.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
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Emulation of upper-crust speech norms became popular among the nouveau riche.—
Valerie M. Fridland,
The Conversation,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Eliastam was met by fellow adventurer Andy Dorantes and members of ALE.—
David Chiu,
PEOPLE,
4 May 2026
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Around that time, a celebrity biologist and adventurer named Robert Marc Lehmann showed up in a gray-camouflage wetsuit.—
Jessica Camille Aguirre,
New Yorker,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Parvenu.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/parvenu. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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