intelligentsia

[ in-tel-i-jent-see-uh, -gent- ]

plural noun

1. intellectuals considered as a group or class, especially as a cultural, social, or political elite.

intelligentsia

/ ɪnˌtɛlɪˈdʒɛntsɪə /

noun

1. the intelligentsia
   the educated or intellectual people in a society or community

intelligentsia

1. Intellectuals who form an artistic, social, or political vanguard or elite.

Word History and Origins

Origin of intelligentsia¹

1905–10; < Russian intelligéntsia < Latin intelligentia intelligence

Word History and Origins

Origin of intelligentsia¹

C20: from Russian intelligentsiya, from Latin intellegentia intelligence

Example Sentences

"I think the people who live here are a somewhat different community because it’s the intelligentsia," she says, "educated people who can’t live without the arts."

From BBC

It's disconcerting to realize that the right-wing legal intelligentsia is infected with Fox News Brain Rot all the way to the top.

From Salon

Artists who operate this way are looked down upon by the art world’s intelligentsia.

From Los Angeles Times

As Ganz goes on to argue, "But for a lot of people in the intelligentsia, generalized anti-wokeness is a kind of gateway drug to extreme politics."

From Salon

Not that there’s a great intelligentsia in this country.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• circle
• club
• company
• degree
• family
• grade
• league
• place
• position