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petit bourgeois

American  
[puh-tee boor-zhwah, pet-ee boor-zhwah, boor-zhwah, puh-tee boor-zhwa] / pəˈti bʊərˈʒwɑ, ˈpɛt i ˈbʊər ʒwɑ, bʊərˈʒwɑ, pə ti burˈʒwa /

noun

plural

petits bourgeois

  1. a person who belongs to the petite bourgeoisie.

petit bourgeois British  
/ pəti burʒwa, ˈpɛtɪ ˈbʊəʒwɑː /

noun

  1. Also called: petite bourgeoisie.   petty bourgeoisie.  the section of the middle class with the lowest social status, generally composed of shopkeepers, lower clerical staff, etc

  2. a member of this stratum

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the petit bourgeois, esp indicating a sense of self-righteousness and a high degree of conformity to established standards of behaviour

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • petit-bourgeois adjective

Etymology

Origin of petit bourgeois

Borrowed into English from French around 1855–60

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.