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Synonyms

salt of the earth

American  

noun

  1. an individual or group considered as representative of the best or noblest elements of society.


salt of the Earth Cultural  
  1. Basic, fundamental goodness; the phrase can be used to describe any simple, good person: “I like Mary: she's reliable, trustworthy, and straightforward; she's the salt of the Earth.” In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells his followers, who are mainly fishermen and other simple people, “Ye are the salt of the Earth.”


Etymology

Origin of salt of the earth

1350–1400; Middle English; after Matthew 5:13

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.

He described the three people killed as “three beloved parishioners — salt of the earth people, just great, great people.”

From Washington Times • Jun. 26, 2023

"It is true there are few of us here, but we call ourselves the salt of the earth because even a pinch of salt can add a lot of flavour to this town."

From Reuters • Apr. 13, 2023

The energy in Liverpool, it's just salt of the earth people.

From BBC • Sep. 22, 2022

“This was a woman, salt of the earth, who always worked fingers to bone,” De León said.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2021

These were good people, common people; the salt of the earth; people whom I should count myself fortunate to know.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt