nouveau riche

[noo-voh reesh, noo-voh reesh]

noun

plural

nouveaux riches 

1. a person who is newly rich.

   the ostentation of the nouveaux riches of the 1920s.

nouveau riche

/ ˌnuːvəʊ ˈriːʃ, nuvo riʃ /

noun

1. (often plural) a person who has acquired wealth recently and is regarded as vulgarly ostentatious or lacking in social graces

adjective

1. of or characteristic of the nouveaux riches

nouveau riche

1. A pejorative term for one who has recently become rich and who spends money conspicuously. From French, meaning “new rich.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of nouveau riche¹

1805–15; < French: new rich (person)

Word History and Origins

Origin of nouveau riche¹

French, literally: new rich