gentry

[ jen-tree ]

/ ˈdʒɛn tri /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gentry ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

wellborn and well-bred people.

(in England) the class below the nobility.

an upper or ruling class; aristocracy.

those who are not members of the nobility but are entitled to a coat of arms, especially those owning large tracts of land.

(used with a plural verb) people, especially considered as a specific group, class, or kind: The polo crowd doesn't go there, but these hockey gentry do.

the state or condition of being a gentleman.

RELATED WORDS

aristocracy

Nearby words

Origin of gentry

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English word from Old French word genterie. See gentile, gentle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for gentry

But the new rich, particularly the young, tend to be more progressive, or at least gentry liberal.
Trustafarians Want to Tell You How to Live|Joel Kotkin|October 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Gentry domination requires allies with a broader social base and their own political power.
California’s New Feudalism Benefits a Few at the Expense of the Multitude|Joel Kotkin|October 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The Beltway gentry gets a great deal on government-provided health care—but they think your plan needs cutting.
D.C. Elites Agree on Medicare RX: Cuts for Thee, but Not for Me|Lloyd Green|March 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
If Wall Street wants to join the “progressive” gentry parade again, as it did in 2008, Republican should encourage them.
Off the Rails: How the Party of Lincoln Became the Party of Plutocrats|Joel Kotkin|November 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Would they stand by "their order" in so far as to adhere to the cause of the gentry?
Charles Lever, His Life in His Letters, Vol. II (of II)|Edmund Downey
Fox-hunting for two centuries has been the natural pastime of the Virginia gentry.
The Doctor's Red Lamp|Various
He blamed the labor men for not choosing labor men to office instead of the gentry who offered themselves.
Seven English Cities|William Dean Howells
For this service the elder Gentry paid him eight dollars a month and his passage home on a steamboat.
A Short Life of Abraham Lincoln|John G. Nicolay
Whenever the gentry of Fecamp gave a dinner they always had at least one of Madame Toine's chickens to be in the fashion.
Original Short Stories, Volume 9 (of 13)|Guy de Maupassant

British Dictionary definitions for gentry

gentry

/ (ˈdʒɛntrɪ) /

noun

persons of high birth or social standing; aristocracy

British persons just below the nobility in social rank

informal, often derogatory people, esp of a particular group or kind

Word Origin for gentry

C14: from Old French genterie, from gentil gentle

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for gentry

gentry

c.1300, "nobility of rank or birth," from Old French genterise, variant of gentilise "noble birth, gentleness," from gentil (see gentle). Meaning "noble persons" is from 1520s. Earlier in both senses was gentrice (c.1200 as "nobility of character," late 14c. as "noble persons"). In Anglo-Irish, gentry was a name for "the fairies" (1880), and gentle could mean "enchanted" (1823).