careerist

American  

[kuh-reer-ist] / kəˈrɪər ɪst /

noun

1. a person who follows a career.

2. a person who pursues a policy or attitude of careerism.

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careerist British  

/ kəˈrɪərɪst /

noun

1. a person who values success in his career above all else and seeks to advance it by any possible means

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Other Word Forms

• careerism
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of careerist

First recorded in 1905–10; career + -ist

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

careerist

“No forum is too small, technical or peripheral for careerist Chinese diplomats seeking recognition for defending Beijing’s position,” said Jacob Stokes, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Center for a New American Security think tank.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

When asked whether his defection was motivated by an opportunity to become MP for Gravesham again, Mr Holloway insisted he was not a "careerist".

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2025

I am not a careerist; I have no such aspirations.

From Salon ● May 9, 2023

But Maxwell, a careerist whose ambitions are a fortress against reality, is in deep denial.

From New York Times ● Jun. 2, 2022

We are condemned to be classed with the dodo and the mammoth by the coming discoverer of an escape from the slave and careerist.

From The Glands Regulating Personality by Louis Berman M.D.

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