snob

American  

[snob] / snɒb /

noun

1. a person who imitates, cultivates, or slavishly admires social superiors and is condescending or overbearing to others.

2. a person who claims to be an expert or connoisseur in a given field and is condescending toward or disdainful of those who hold other opinions or have different tastes regarding this field.

   a musical snob.

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snob British  

/ snɒb /

noun

1. 1. a person who strives to associate with those of higher social status and who behaves condescendingly to others Compare inverted snob

   2. ( as modifier )

      snob appeal

2. a person having similar pretensions with regard to his tastes, etc

   an intellectual snob

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Other Word Forms

• antisnob
  noun
• snobbery
  noun
• snobbishness
  noun
• snobbish
  adjective
• snobby
  adjective
• snobbishly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of snob

First recorded in 1775–85; origin uncertain; first used as a nickname for “a cobbler or cobbler's apprentice,” hence “a townsman, someone of low class or lacking good breeding, commoner,” hence ”someone who imitates persons of higher rank”

Explanation

If your best friend tells you that you've become a snob, he means that you've become condescending and you like to think you're better than everyone else. Of course maybe he's a snob for looking down on your behavior — how annoying! Snob has a funny history. It used be slang for "shoemaker," then "common person," and then came to mean "someone who doesn't have a degree from a fancy university," and then it started to mean "people who liked to pretend they have degrees and are generally fancy and look down on common people like shoemakers." Nowadays, snob isn't only for people with false pretentions. Rich people who despise less tasteful folks are snobs, too.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

snob

As Margo, the formidable social-climbing snob with a cut-glass voice but a soft interior, Keith ensured her place in the nation's hearts.

From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026

“I’m not a shoe snob or anything. But, you know, if you’re going to pay money for shoes ….”

From Slate ● Jun. 5, 2026

Dwight Macdonald managed the difficult feat of being a democratic socialist and at the same time a tiresome snob and cultural reactionary, often coming off like a retired colonel at his London club.

From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2026

My 24-year-old son, who’s kind of a food snob, is like, “There’s a hundred places that are better and cheaper within five minutes of there in the San Gabriel Valley.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026

Darling, what a question, but here goes: my nanny was a dreadful snob.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times