working-class

1 of 2

adjective

work·​ing-class ˈwər-kiŋ-ˈklas 

: of, relating to, deriving from, or suitable to the class of wage earners

working-class virtues

a working-class family

working class

2 of 2

noun

: the class of people who work for wages usually at manual labor

Examples of working-class in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Much of that growth came among the state’s Latino population, which makes up a large proportion of Democrats’ traditional working-class base. —Noah Bierman, Los Angeles Times, 22 Dec. 2024

The novelist, born to immigrant parents, Mary Hanson, from Denmark, and Peter Walker, from the Danish West Indies, had lived in a working-class neighborhood in Chicago. —Ethelene Whitmire, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024

Noun

Moreover, a shocking number of indicators suggest life in California has grown considerably harder for the Latino working class since the mid-1990s even as Latino representation has proliferated at every level of government. —Mike Madrid, The Mercury News, 20 Dec. 2024

The killing has divided the nation, with some regarding Mangione as a hero of the working class, despite coming from an elite Baltimore-area family. —Racquel Bazos, Baltimore Sun, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1833, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1757, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

working class

noun

: the class of people who work for wages usually in manual labor

working-class adjective