Phrase guide

labour aristocracy

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

Segment of the working class that enjoys a relatively privileged position compared to the rest of the working class as a result of higher salaries, better working conditions, etc., and which can lead them to have different interests and perspectives even though they continue to be exploited by capitalists.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: government, human-sciences, ideology, philosophy, politics, sciences, socialism

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Compound of labour + aristocracy. The theory about relatively privileged proletarians, thus more manipulable into collaborating with the bourgeoisie, was formulated by Friedrich Engels in a letter to Karl Marx [7 October 1858]. A precursor to the wording appears in Marx's Das Kapital, Volume I [1867].

Across languages

Translations

10 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 工人貴族 /工人贵族 (gōngrén guìzú) — Translations
  • Chinese Mandarin: 勞工貴族 /劳工贵族 (láogōng guìzú) — Translations
  • French: aristocratie ouvrière — Translations
  • German: Arbeiteraristokratie — Translations
  • Japanese: 労働貴族 (rōdō kizoku) — Translations
  • Korean: 노동귀족 (nodonggwijok) — Translations
  • Punjabi: ਮਜ਼ਦੂਰ ਕੁਲੀਨਤੰਤਰ (mazdūr kulīntantar) — Translations
  • Russian: рабочая аристократия (rabočaja aristokratija) — Translations
  • Spanish: aristocracia obrera — Translations
  • Vietnamese: công nhân quý tộc — Translations