elitist

1 of 2

noun

elit·​ist i-ˈlē-tist  ē-  ā- 

plural elitists

1

: one who is an adherent of elitism : one whose attitudes and beliefs are biased in favor of a socially elite class of people

On many issues, they seem to be populists rather than elitists—believers that people can make decisions for themselves better than elites can.

—Michael Barone

Derided by elitists as phony, the … movement is spontaneous, decentralized, frequently amateurish and sometimes shrill.

—Karl Rove

2

: a person who is or regards himself or herself as a member of a socially elite group

He's too rich, too polished—he's an elitist in a party that has become home to disaffected white, working-class voters.

—Joe Klein

He was an elitist, who esteemed himself better than Americans from most classes of the population.

—Louis Filler

elitist

2 of 2

adjective

: of or relating to elites or elitism: such as

a

: giving special treatment and advantages to wealthy and powerful people

elitist colleges

an elitist country club

Cosmetic surgery is still mostly an elitist preoccupation …

—Toni Bentley

b

: regarding other people as inferior because they lack power, wealth, or status : snobbish

an elitist snob

elitist classmates

Synonyms

Adjective

• aristocratic
• high-hat
• persnickety
• potty
• ritzy
• snobbish
• snobby
• snooty
• snotty
• toffee-nosed [chiefly British]

Examples of elitist in a Sentence

Adjective

the complacent, elitist attitude of the members at that suburban country club

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

His international experience, critics say, is running in rarefied circles like the World Economic Forum in Davos, painting him as an out-of-touch global elitist who has not spent any time dealing with ordinary people. —Matina Stevis-Gridneff, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2025

To me, these responses play right into Trump’s hands, reinforcing his claims that liberals are out-of-touch elitists. —Joanna Dee Das, The Conversation, 4 Apr. 2025

Adjective

Even so, rowing’s aesthetic still carries a certain elitist haze. —Stephan Rabimov, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025

Harris has risen above the notoriously white, elitist spaces of the theatre world. —Julian Randall, Essence, 29 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1938, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1943, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing elitist

• anti-elitist

Rhymes for elitist

• completest
• defeatist
• neatest
• sweetest