white-collar

[ hwahyt-kol-er, wahyt- ]
See synonyms for white-collar on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. belonging or pertaining to the ranks of office and professional workers whose jobs generally do not involve manual labor or the wearing of a uniform or work clothes.

noun
  1. a white-collar worker.

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Origin of white-collar

1
First recorded in 1920–25

Words Nearby white-collar

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use white-collar in a sentence

  • A white shirt and white collar fairly hurt the eye, being in such sharp contrast with Bill's dark skin and darker beard.

    Mystery Ranch | Arthur Chapman
  • A great white collar flashed about his neck against the somber hue of his face and his coal-black eyes.

    The Woman Gives | Owen Johnson
  • Sam Stay looked at the black coat and the white collar in doubt.

    The Daffodil Mystery | Edgar Wallace
  • The stout clergyman in the immaculate white collar beamed benevolently at the questioner and shook his head with a gentle smile.

    The Daffodil Mystery | Edgar Wallace
  • "And you've got no collar on" (Tess had been accustomed to wear a little white collar at the dairy).

British Dictionary definitions for white-collar

white-collar

adjective
  1. of, relating to, or designating nonmanual and usually salaried workers employed in professional and clerical occupations: white-collar union Compare blue-collar, pink-collar

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

Cultural definitions for white-collar

white-collar

A descriptive term for office workers, who use a minimum of physical exertion, as opposed to blue-collar laborers. Managerial, clerical, and sales jobs are common white-collar occupations.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.