the class of travel accommodations, as on a train, that are less costly and luxurious than first class but are more costly and luxurious than third class.
(in the U.S. Postal Service) the class of mail consisting of newspapers and periodicals not sealed against postal inspection.
the second of three honors degrees conferred by a British university.
of a secondary class or quality.
second-rate; inferior.
of the class or grade next to the best in quality, etc
shoddy or inferior
of or denoting the class of accommodation in a hotel or on a train, etc, lower in quality and price than first class
(in Britain) of or relating to mail that is processed more slowly than first-class mail
(in the US and Canada) of or relating to mail that consists mainly of newspapers, etc
education See second 1
Inferior; see second best .
Travel accommodations ranking below the highest or first class, as in Traveling second class on European trains is not only cheaper but gives you more contact with local people . [c. 1840]
In the United States and Canada, a category of mail consisting of periodicals and newspapers. [c. 1870]
second-class citizen . An individual regarded or treated as inferior to others in status or rights, an underprivileged person. For example, In many countries women still are considered second-class citizens . This term uses second class in the sense of “inferior.” [c. 1940]
First recorded in 1830–40
First recorded in 1830–40
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting says some women have been made to feel like "second class citizens" with their pain treated "as an inconvenience and their symptoms as an overreaction".
From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026
“He thinks it’s really important that the authors of the 14th Amendment came in and granted citizenship on this principle that there’s no second class of people born in this country.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 29, 2026
A cornerstone of its defence is that delivery rules need to change so second class mail can be taken out less frequently.
From BBC ● Mar. 23, 2026
Pensioners living in two tower blocks said they felt like "second class citizens" after a social landlord quadrupled their heating and hot water bills overnight.
From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2025
My second class of the day was called Global Perspectives.
From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi
But Glenn and other devotees of factory-built housing hope to use the spotlight on recovery to show a still-skeptical public that prefab doesn’t mean second-class.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026
Under segregation, black Americans generally shared a common experience of being second-class citizens.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026
It was at a few after-hours music jam sessions with his co-workers that they got to talking about how in the world of AI audio had become “a second-class citizen.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 28, 2026
That followed an investigation by Ofcom after Royal Mail missed its targets for both first and second-class post in 2024-25.
From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026
“You can’t go to university with a second-class pass, can you?”
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
