Standard Lemma guide

plebs

noun · 3 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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  • /plɛbz/
  • rhymes with -ɛbz

1

noun

Meaning 1

plural of pleb

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: form-of, plural

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The plebeian class of Ancient Rome.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: historical, plural, plural-only

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: plebeiate

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The common people, especially (derogatory) the mob.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: plural, plural-only

Examples

  • 1993, Max Cavalera, "Refuse/Resist", Sepultura, Chaos A.D. Chaos A.D. / Tanks On The Streets / Confronting Police / Bleeding The Plebs

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: canaille, commonality, commonalty, crowd, demos, everyone, general public, great unhosed, great unwashed, herd, hoi polloi, lower class, many, masses, mob, multitude, odds and sods, peasantry, plebs, populace, proletariat, rabble, rank and file, riffraff, third estate, trash, unwashed, unwashed masses, working class

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Latin plēbs (“the plebeian class”), variant of earlier plēbēs. Later also understood as the plural of pleb.

Across languages

Translations

23 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 庶民 (shùmín) — The common people
  • Czech: plebs — The common people
  • Esperanto: popolamaso — The common people
  • French: plèbe — The common people
  • Galician: plebe — The common people
  • German: Plebs — The common people
  • Icelandic: plebbi — The common people
  • Italian: plebe — The common people
  • Japanese: 庶民 (shomin) — The common people
  • Korean: 서민 (seomin) — The common people
  • Korean: плебс — The common people
  • Latin: plebs — The common people
  • Pannonian Rusyn: плебс (plebs) — The common people
  • Persian: عوام ('avâm) — The common people
  • Polish: plebs — The common people
  • Portuguese: plebe — The common people
  • Romanian: plebe — The common people
  • Russian: плебс (plebs) — The common people
  • Russian: чернь (černʹ) — The common people
  • Russian: плебе́и (plebéi) — The common people
  • Serbo-Croatian: plebs — The common people
  • Spanish: plebe — The common people
  • Spanish: populacho — The common people