Word
proletariat
Phoneticspro·le·tari·at
US/ˌpɹoʊɫəˈtɛɹiət/
UK/pɹəʊltˈeəɹɪˌæt/
Uncountable noun
Definition
n. the class of people in a society who do not own property or have much money. They usually work for others to earn their living.
n. the social class of wage-earning workers who do not own the means of production. Often used in political or economic contexts to describe the working class.
Examples
“The proletariat forms the largest part of the population.”
“Historical theories often describe the proletariat as the group that will eventually overthrow the ruling class.”
“The transition from a feudal society to a capitalist one saw the proletariat emerge as the primary force of industrial labor, fundamentally altering the social and economic landscape.”
Examples
simple
“The proletariat forms the largest part of the population.”
contextual
“Historical theories often describe the proletariat as the group that will eventually overthrow the ruling class.”
complex
“The transition from a feudal society to a capitalist one saw the proletariat emerge as the primary force of industrial labor, fundamentally altering the social and economic landscape.”
Etymology
From French prolétariat (“proletariats as a class; state of being a proletariat”), from Latin prōlētārius (“belonging to the lowest class of citizens, whose only contribution to the state was their offspring; member of this class”) + French -at (suffix denoting actions or the results of actions). Prōlētārius is derived from prōlēs (“offspring, posterity”) + -ārius (suffix forming adjectives from nouns, or forming nouns denoting agents of use from other nouns); prōlēs is from pro- (prefix meaning ‘bringing forth or into being; bringing into the open’) + olēs (a variant of oleō (“to grow”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- (“to grow, nourish”)).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C2 ProficiencyIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.8.5–9.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 6.0114–120
- Frequency
- Occasional
- Level
- C2 · Proficiency
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/proletariat