arriviste: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C1/C2 (Low Frequency)Formal, literary, sometimes pejorative
Quick answer
What does “arriviste” mean?
A person who is newly and often opportunistically successful or wealthy, especially one who is ambitious and pushes to join a higher social class or professional sphere.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A person who is newly and often opportunistically successful or wealthy, especially one who is ambitious and pushes to join a higher social class or professional sphere.
A social climber or status seeker perceived as lacking the proper pedigree, taste, or manners associated with the position they have recently attained. The term emphasizes not just the newness of arrival but the perceived pushiness and lack of authenticity.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant difference in meaning or usage. The word is equally recognized and carries the same connotations in both varieties.
Connotations
Identically pejorative. It often connotes a lack of 'breeding' or grace associated with old money or established elites.
Frequency
More likely to be encountered in British formal writing and commentary, particularly concerning class dynamics, but is also well-established in American English for similar contexts.
Grammar
How to Use “arriviste” in a Sentence
Be + considered/viewed/seen/regarded/described as + an arrivisteLabel/deride/ridicule + (someone) + as an arrivisteThe + arriviste + (verb e.g., flaunted, clamoured)Vocabulary
Collocations
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Used critically for executives or entrepreneurs seen as aggressively promoting their new-found status without understanding the subtleties of corporate culture.
Academic
Used in sociological or historical analysis of social mobility and class structures.
Everyday
Very rare in casual conversation. Used in sophisticated critique of social or cultural figures.
Technical
Not used in technical fields.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “arriviste”
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “arriviste”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “arriviste”
- Confusing with 'aristocrat' (opposite meaning).
- Using it as a neutral term for any successful new person.
- Misspelling as 'ariviste' or 'arrivist'.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is almost exclusively negative and critical, implying vulgarity, ambition, and a lack of authentic belonging.
They are close synonyms. 'Parvenu' is perhaps slightly more old-fashioned and specifically implies one who has risen from a low social origin. 'Arriviste' emphasizes the aggressive ambition and recentness of the arrival.
Yes, to describe a new executive, company, or entrepreneur who is seen as brash, unrefined, and overly ambitious by established players in an industry.
It comes from early 20th century French, from the verb 'arriver' (to arrive), modeled on words like 'communiste'.
A person who is newly and often opportunistically successful or wealthy, especially one who is ambitious and pushes to join a higher social class or professional sphere.
Arriviste is usually formal, literary, sometimes pejorative in register.
Arriviste: in British English it is pronounced /ˌæ.rɪˈviːst/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˌɑː.rɪˈviːst/ˌær.əˈviːst/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “He's more of an arriviste than a true gentleman.”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
An ARRIVISTE ARRIVES at a higher status, but they make everyone else feel IRRITATED because of their pushy ITE (knight-like) ambitions.
Conceptual Metaphor
SOCIAL STRATA IS A HIERARCHICAL SPACE; THE ARRIVISTE IS AN AGENT WHO HAS CLIMBED/HAS ARRIVED INTO THAT SPACE WITHOUT PERMISSION.
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following is the best definition of 'arriviste'?