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rentier

American  
[rahn-tyey] / rɑ̃ˈtyeɪ /

noun

French.

plural

rentiers
  1. a person who has a fixed income, as from lands or bonds.


rentier British  
/ rɑ̃tje /

noun

    1. a person whose income consists primarily of fixed unearned amounts, such as rent or bond interest

    2. ( as modifier )

      the rentier class

"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

Etymology

Origin of rentier

from rente ; see rent 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Pinar Giritlioglu, the Istanbul head of the Chamber of City Planners, said: "Unfortunately, the rentier system instead of science continues to rule everything."

From Reuters • Feb. 20, 2023

The high interest rates on bank deposits encouraged a rentier economy that disincentivized investment in industry and agriculture.

From New York Times • Oct. 28, 2021

The term rentier society refers to an economic model of this design, and it has its origins in the early history of the United States, which was characterized by a slowly financializing economy.

From Salon • Mar. 29, 2019

What I would like to take up is Adam Smith views on the rentier class, which, for me at least, is a far more intellectually interesting topic than Keynesianism versus… SSVE.

From Forbes • Aug. 26, 2014

At Aix he tried to pass for a respectable rentier; he found no difficulty in being silly, but he could not achieve the necessary commonplaceness.

From Since Cézanne by Bell, Clive