lower class

¹ American  

[loh-er] / ˈloʊ ər /

noun

1. a class of people below the middle class, having the lowest social rank or standing due to low income, lack of skills or education, and the like.

2. (broadly) working class.

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lower-class ² American  

[loh-er-klas, -klahs] / ˈloʊ ərˈklæs, -ˈklɑs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the lower class.

   lower-class values.

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lower class British  

noun

1. the social stratum having the lowest position in the social hierarchy Compare middle class upper class working class

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adjective

1. of or relating to the lower class

2. inferior or vulgar

Etymology

Origin of lower class¹

First recorded in 1765–75

Origin of lower-class²

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

“Even if a government job is lower class, it is still prestigious in Bangladesh,” Amin said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 11, 2026

"For the first time it was the Kenyan people - the working class and the middle class and the lower class - against the ruling class," says Mwangi.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2025

Lavin was the grandchild of Russian immigrants, and in later years she often played variations on the Jewish mother — lower class, middle class, upper class.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 30, 2024

Thompson suggested that food formed part of the "moral economy" and food prices were central to lower class protest in England.

From Salon • Mar. 30, 2023

What is key to America’s understanding of class is the persistent belief—despite all evidence to the contrary—that anyone, with the proper discipline and drive, can move from a lower class to a higher class.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Related Words

• proletariat
• working class