Roturier

Pronunciation varies by accent · noun

Meaning

A commoner or plebeian; a person of low rank; especially, in pre-Revolutionary France, a member of the social class comprising all who were not nobles or clergy..

Example Sentences

‘This fellow has imbibed all the insolent consequence of those among whom he had lived; and, though roturier himself, conceives, that he derives from the honour of being the idle valet to a nobleman, a right to despise and trample on the honest man who draws his subsistence from the ground by independent industry.’

This fact shows our British independence and honest feeling—our higher orders are not such mere haughty aristocrats as the ignorant represent them: on the contrary, if a man have money they will hold out their hands to him, eat his dinners, dance at his balls, marry his daughters, or give their own lovely girls to his sons, as affably as your commonest roturier would do.

He cannot forgive Socrates for his humble origin; he calls him a "roturier," and accuses him of corrupting the noble Athenian youth with a democratic moral bias.

Synonyms for roturier

Antonyms for roturier

Related Words

Word Forms

• roturiers

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

Practice and Learn More

Frequently Asked Questions