Dictionary Home » Dictionary Definitions » bourgeois

bourgeois

Listen See in Thesaurus See in a sentence

Bourgeois is French and means a member of the middle class.

(noun)

An example of bourgeois are people living in moderately-priced suburban neighborhoods.

The definition of bourgeois is relating to the middle class.

(adjective)

An example of bourgeois is a mid-priced restaurant where many locals frequent.

See bourgeois in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun pl. bourgeois

Obsolete a freeman of a medieval town
a self-employed person, as a shopkeeper or businessman
a member of the bourgeoisie, or middle class
a person whose beliefs, attitudes, and practices are conventionally middle-class

Origin: Fr < OFr burgeis < ML burgensis < burgus, borgus, town < OFr borc or Frank *burg, bourg

adjective

of or characteristic of a bourgeois or the bourgeoisie; middle-class; also used variously to mean conventional, smug, materialistic, etc.

See bourgeois in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun pl. bourgeois bourgeois

A person belonging to the middle class.
A person whose attitudes and behavior are marked by conformity to the standards and conventions of the middle class.
In Marxist theory, a member of the property-owning class; a capitalist.

adjective

Of, relating to, or typical of the middle class.
Held to be preoccupied with respectability and material values.

Origin:

Origin: French

Origin: , from Old French burgeis, citizen of a town

Origin: , from bourg, bourg; see bourg

French statesman who was a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague (1903-1925) and helped draft the Covenant of the League of Nations (1919). He won the 1920 Nobel Peace Prize.

, Louise Born 1911.

French-born American sculptor whose often erotic sculptures are characterized by elongated figures and abstract shapes.

Learn more about bourgeois

bourgeois synonyms

bourgeois in a sentence

bourgeois quotes

bourgeois images