bourgeoise

American  

[boor-zhwahz, boor-zhwahz, boor-zhwaz] / ˈbʊər ʒwɑz, bʊərˈʒwɑz, burˈʒwaz /

noun

bourgeoises plural

1. a female member of the bourgeoisie.

   As a bourgeoise herself, it was her constant policy to elevate and extend the influence of the middle classes.

   The simpler clothes marked her out as a working-class woman rather than a bourgeoise.

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adjective

1. (of a woman, women's concerns, etc.) having, reflecting, or relating to conventional tastes, opinions, and values believed to be determined mainly by a concern for respectability and material wealth; middle-class.

   The movie has to do with careers, fashion, and emotional relationships among mostly idle, rich, bourgeoise females.

   The two women promptly joined corporate law firms, got plastic surgery, and are now enjoying a perfectly wonderful bourgeoise lifestyle.

2. (of a woman, women's concerns, etc.) belonging to, characteristic of, or consisting of members of the middle class, especially as viewed in Marxist theory; concerned with ownership of property and maintenance of the status quo, and having or catering to interests opposed to those of the lower or working class.

   The romance between these revolutionary youths and bourgeoise women was motivated by a longing for a life of danger.

   Socialist critics called the activist Women's Club a bourgeoise organization.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bourgeoises
  plural

Etymology

Origin of bourgeoise

First recorded in 1755–65; from French; feminine of bourgeois ¹

Example Sentences

Yet as we exited Paris and headed deeper and deeper into “green, bourgeoise France,” the rush of scenery out the window was much as he described.

From New York Times • Jun. 5, 2018

Despite the proletarian connotation of its name, many denounced the building as a bourgeoise emblem.

From New York Times • Sep. 26, 2016

Its vision of a Dorothy stripped of her bourgeoise pretensions and placed in an Oz that looked a lot like, well, the real New York City made it a multiple-Tony-winning hit.

From Time • Dec. 3, 2015

But there's a long tradition of pulling the chain of the bourgeoise with in-your-face satire.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 9, 2012

Leonid Andreyev was born of a humble bourgeoise family in Orel, in 1871.

From Contemporary Russian Novelists by Persky, Serge