yuppie

American  

[yuhp-ee] / ˈjʌp i /

Or yuppy

noun

• yuppies
  plural

1. (often initial capital letter) a young, ambitious, and well-educated city-dweller who has a professional career and an affluent lifestyle.

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yuppie British  

/ ˈjʌpɪ /

noun

1. an affluent young professional person

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adjective

1. typical of or reflecting the values characteristic of yuppies

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• yuppiedom
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• yuppies
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of yuppie

First recorded in 1980–85, y(oung) u(rban) p(rofessional) + -ie

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Explanation

If your brother calls you a yuppie, it's not a compliment, but it does mean that he sees you as a well-paid, professional adult. In the mid-1980's, people started using the derogatory term yuppie to talk about a particular group of middle-class, well-educated workers. Yuppies are distinguished by their disposable income and the things on which they choose to spend it, like clothes, food, and cars. Yuppie is a shortened form of "young urban professional," and its popularity won out over other acronyms of the time, "yumpie," for "young upwardly mobile professional, and "yap," for "young aspiring professional."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

yuppie yuppies

When she begins dating the owner of a local pet shop, Iona immediately falls in step with her yuppie new beau.

From Salon ● Feb. 28, 2026

Mr. Pita, fluent in English and backed by strong support from younger Thais, appears in public as a jovial yuppie brimming with bright ideas, confident that he can overcome the constitutional hurdles in his path.

From Washington Times ● Jul. 11, 2023

So from that Sonny Bono beach bum guy, he becomes the icon for being a yuppie.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 20, 2022

A versatile character actor whose television roles included a yuppie producer on “Newhart” and a closeted dad on “Girls” and who was on Broadway with longtime friend Tom Hanks in “Lucky Guy.”

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 2, 2021

Don’t let the cockatiel throw you off; this is no yuppie ambience.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

“The yuppies might like it, but we’re all set on bike lanes,” Mr. Napolitano said.

From New York Times ● May 21, 2023

“I was not interested in creating co-living spaces for yuppies living in Berlin,” she said.

From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2023

DiDi, serving as Greek chorus and comic relief, pulls Ms. Noomin directly into the story, saying: “Are you gonna let some cartoon yuppies cry cartoon tears over your lost babies?”

From Washington Post ● Sep. 17, 2022

The ’80s and ’90s were a heyday for movies about terrorized yuppies, in the mode of “Fatal Attraction,” “Single White Female” and “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 15, 2020

“Far as I can tell,” Tee said, “hipsters are basically yuppies with tighter pants and bigger glasses. Whatever they are, they make a mean mochaccino.”

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

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