social class

noun

plural social classes

: a group of people sharing the same social or socioeconomic status : class sense 2a

The well-to-do WTUL [=Women's Trade Union League] volunteers who joined striking New York City shirtwaist workers in 1909 had used their elegant attire to convey the fact that no woman, whatever her social class, could ignore the hardships endured by clothing workers in America.

—Ellen Cain

Her research explores the use and abuse of diversity and inclusion policy as a form of reputation management, and how social class influences access to and career progression within 'elite' occupations.

—Queen Mary University of London

The eight women denied being witches, but Mary was believed. She was 18, pretty, educated and from a higher social class.

—Martina Devlin

Examples of social class in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That is no longer the case: politicians come from various social classes and backgrounds, and many of them share sociologically very little, if anything, with the rich. —Branko Milanovic, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2019

Analysts have proposed several different explanations for those shifts, including sexism within communities of color, pessimistic views of the economy and inflation, disinformation, social class and the ongoing ideological sorting of nonwhite conservatives into the Republican Party. —Michael Tesler, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2024

His rise is also related to race, gender, social class, economic status, and simple political philosophies that may have a lot to do with the disability experience, or very little. —Andrew Pulrang, Forbes, 20 Nov. 2024

In Italy, even clientele’s social class has transitioned. —John Hopewell, Variety, 26 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1794, in the meaning defined above