WORKING-CLASS Synonyms: 83 Similar and Opposite Words

working class 1 of 2

noun

Definition of working class

as in middle class

the class of people who earn money by doing usually physical work and who are not rich or powerful

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Dissimilar Words

working-class

2 of 2

adjective

as in middle-class

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of working class

Noun

But the report cautions against viewing those gains as evidence that Chicago’s Latino working class is disappearing. — Allison Kiehl, Chicago Tribune, 18 Sep. 2026 But according to the study, half of upper-income adults—those earning above $155,600 annually—now also see themselves as working class. — Muskaan Arshad, Fortune, 14 Sep. 2026

Adjective

In Maine, Senate candidate Troy Jackson asserts that politicians should not pit working-class people against renewable energy, casting the climate-versus-affordability debate as a false choice. — Geoffrey Henderson, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2026 Flávio Bolsonaro, perched atop a sound truck at a recent campaign rally in Rio de Janeiro’s working-class suburbs, could at first glance be mistaken for his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently under house arrest. — Constance Malleret, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for working class

Recent Examples of Synonyms for working class

Noun

This acceleration in the redistribution of wealth from the middle class to the very top, in short, has an array of drivers.

— Markus Schneider, The Conversation, 20 Oct. 2026
Expanding worker retraining programs, investing in the ailing public school system, and improving access to community colleges will do far more than tariffs to rebuild the middle class—and are the first steps in forging a new social contract.

— Charles Kupchan, Foreign Affairs, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of middle class

Adjective

And judging by the amount of controversy that’s already been stirred up, Sacha Baron Cohen’s iconic character of a middle-class white Brit appropriating hip-hop and Jamaican mannerisms still has the ability to rile people.

— Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
The rigid enforcement of the NBA introduced another era of expensive hardbacks, giving a new lease of life to the middle-class circulating libraries.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of middle-class

Noun

When the arcade first opened, Europe was navigating industrialization, the rise of the urban bourgeoisie, and the emergence of modern ready-to-wear fashion.

— Eleonora Giordani, Vogue, 17 Sep. 2026
The state discovered that reforms had to be beneficial to all, and so the political mission had to be implementing education and acculturation as a means of solidifying the nascent bourgeoisie.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of bourgeoisie

Adjective

Doctrinaire critics accused her of being bourgeois, formalist, decadent.

— Alex Ross, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Its formless body accommodated slouching, lounging or lying down, selling freedom from both conventional posture and the bourgeois living room.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of bourgeois

Adjective

Disease that has spread to those organs is associated with poorer treatment outcomes.

— Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
They were frustrated with teacher shortages and poor conditions at schools, including overcrowded classrooms and dilapidated buildings.

— James Cirrone , Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of poor

Adjective

On the fall 2026 runways, romantic clothes arrived styled like everything else in your closet—a lace skirt with a cotton shirt, a gown with a combat boot, a ruffled collar over plain velvet trousers—and the shift is visible on the street too.

— Laurence Goldberg, Vogue, 24 Oct. 2026
Refrigerated tortellini is one of the fastest ways to turn plain broth into a satiating, delicious meal.

— Danielle Bouchard, Martha Stewart, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of plain

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working (at or on)

working class

working-class

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Style

“Working class.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/working%20class. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of working class

noun

adjective

Example Sentences

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