aristocratic

adjective

ə-ˌri-stə-ˈkra-tik How to pronounce aristocratic (audio)
Definition of aristocraticnext
1
as in arrogant
being or characteristic of a person who has an offensive air of superiority and tends to ignore or disdain anyone regarded as inferior the restaurant's cuisine is truly superb, but the maître d's aristocratic demeanor is a bit much

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in noble
of high birth, rank, or station an impoverished dowager who never lets people forget about her aristocratic origins

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of aristocratic The historic European Protestant traditions that were the forebears of the American church placed great emphasis on learning and on doctrine, but the result was a faith that tended to be aristocratic and élitist. — Michael Luo, New Yorker, 14 June 2026 In my experience, some Americans with an overly keen interest in English aristocratic traditions seem motivated by disdain for their fellow citizens who are not descended from white Europeans. — Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 9 June 2026 The Sound and The Fury Told by four narrators in a stream of consciousness writing style, this 1929 story describes the downfall of a wealthy Southern aristocratic family, the Compsons. — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 25 June 2026 Because of previous demand, over 20,000 people had been employed in buckle manufacture in the Birmingham area, but when this aristocratic fashion suddenly collapsed in 1786 on the eve of the French Revolution, their trade collapsed along with it. — Literary Hub, 25 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for aristocratic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for aristocratic
  1. arrogant
  2. noble
  3. snobbish
  4. great
  5. elitist
  6. upper-class
  7. snooty
  8. patrician
Adjective
  • West Germany, arrogant attitude adjusted, pounded Chile, 4-1.
    — David j. Neal, Miami Herald, 24 June 2026
  • Lasso, in his initial introduction to audiences, wasn’t the warm, pun-loving, inspirational coach audiences would eventually embrace through Apple +, but a slightly arrogant buffoon parodying the average American sports fan.
    — Charles Moss, New York Times, 24 June 2026
Definition of arrogant
Adjective
  • The idea that, rather than taking your phone out of your pocket to open the Soundcore app to get all the settings, is a noble one, but it's replaced by taking your carry case out of your pocket, unlocking it, and then getting to all the settings.
    — Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • So did his friendly rival, John Adams, who wrote of his dream ‘…to see rising in America an empire of liberty, and a prospect of two or three hundred millions of freemen, without one noble or one king among them.
    — Robert Pearlman, ArsTechnica, 1 July 2026
Definition of noble
Adjective
  • America’s cheap conveniences can (and often do) spark snobbish criticism about junk food and car culture, but visitors are going viral for enthusiastically embracing the American way.
    — Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026
  • Storied animation producer Bonnie Arnold gave short shrift to those who are snobbish about her beloved discipline at Annecy today.
    — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 22 June 2026
Definition of snobbish
Adjective
  • William's sixth-great-grandfather was born in Coventry in 1740 and enlisted as a private in the Connecticut militia.
    — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 5 July 2026
  • Leave some messiness in your garden and leave the leaves, as decaying leaves are great habitat for fireflies.
    — Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 5 July 2026
Definition of great
Adjective
  • Papathanasopoulou said many of her past students have credited popular works inspired by the classics, including the Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief books and movies as well as the Hades video game franchise, for opening their minds to a field that may at first seem elitist.
    — David Mack, CNN Money, 28 June 2026
  • If this slow, deliberative process is no longer valued by society, and particularly by research funders, then mathematics could become an elitist activity, only practiced by select organizations that can afford to work with proprietary AI models.
    — Benjamin Skuse, IEEE Spectrum, 25 June 2026
Definition of elitist
Adjective
  • Middle and upper-class people would have wanted special implements for drinking these beverages and a place to drink it.
    — James Doubek, NPR, 3 July 2026
  • The summer camps of the late 19th and early 20th centuries were primarily for white, Protestant, middle- and upper-class boys from Northeastern cities.
    — Derek H. Alderman, The Conversation, 26 June 2026
Definition of upper-class
Adjective
  • While the early years saw one of TV’s best on-and-off romances between man-of-the-people Sam and snooty-pants (but sweet and sincere) Diane, played by the miraculous Shelley Long, the show didn’t miss a step when Diane split and Sam sold the bar to Kirstie Alley’s girlboss Rebecca.
    — Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 8 June 2026
  • Particularly his wife, who’s in the running to join a snooty women’s club.
    — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 7 June 2026
Definition of snooty
Adjective
  • Raised in the patrician circles of New York, Sister Parish opened her firm, in 1933 after her family’s fortunes declined following the 1929 market crash.
    — Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 22 May 2026
  • For patrician statesmen, grandeur is usually understated, radiating restraint rather than gawk-inspiring shows of brazen wealth.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 13 Apr. 2026
Definition of patrician

Browse Nearby Words

aristocrat
aristocratic
aristocrats
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Aristocratic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/aristocratic. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on aristocratic

Nglish: Translation of aristocratic for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All