snob
nounUK /snɒb/ · US /snɑb/
Etymology Late 18th century dialectal English snob (“cobbler”), of unknown origin. Early senses of the word carried the meaning of "lower status"; it was then used to describe those seeking to imitate those of higher wealth or status. Folk etymology derives it from the Latin phrase sine nobilitate (“without nobility”), but early uses had no connection to this. The modern sense was popularized by William Makepeace Thackeray in The Book of Snobs (1848).
Derogatory, Informal A person who wishes to be seen as a member of the upper classes or of some other elite (such as the masters of a certain craft) and who looks down on those perceived to have inferior or unrefined tastes, skills, etc.
- an insufferable snob
- a wine snob
4 more examples
- a food snob
- "How do you do?" said Mabel politely. "No, I'm not from the town. I live at Yalding Towers." The name seemed to impress Mademoiselle very much. Gerald anxiously hoped in his own mind that she was not a snob.1907, E. Nesbit, The Enchanted Castle:
- Proceed as a snob climbing the social ladder, namely, know the best people in the neighbourhood, then the best people they know. The end is not that of snobbery, but an eternal treasure.1918, Walter Lionel George, A Novelist on Novels:
- Outside of his own set he was considered rather a snob, but as his set was the set, it never worried him.1920 September, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, “The Four Fists”, in Flappers and Philosophers, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 249:
Colloquial A cobbler or shoemaker.
- The snobs were also kind to him, and gave him a pair of boots which they assured him were of a type and quality reserved entirely for officers […]1929, Frederic Manning, The Middle Parts of Fortune, Vintage, published 2014, page 57:
Dated A member of the lower classes; a commoner.
- 'D'ye know a slap-up sort of button, when you see it?' said the youth. 'Don't look at mine, if you ain't a judge, because these lions' heads was made for men of taste: not snobs.'1842 December – 1844 July, Charles Dickens, The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1844, →OCLC:
- I like better gin-and-water than claret. I like a sanded floor in Carnaby Market better than a chalked one in Mayfair. I prefer Snobs, I own it.1848 November – 1850 December, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter 31, in The History of Pendennis. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1849–1850, →OCLC:
1 more example
- I tell you, sir, that I have a brain of my own, and that I should feel myself to be a snob and a slave if I did not use it.1913, Arthur Conan Doyle, “(please specify the page)”, in The Poison Belt […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC:
Archaic A workman who works for lower wages than his fellows, especially one who will not join a strike (a scab).
A townsman, as opposed to a gownsman.
Cambridge University
- Derived terms
- antisnob, outsnob, snobbery, snobbism, snobbiness, snobbish, snobbishly, snobbishness, snobby, snobdom, snob effect, Snob Hill, snobism, snobling, snobocracy, snobocratic, snobography, snoburbs, snob value
- Related terms
- hobnob
- Coordinate terms
- posh, social climber, nouveau riche