World Languages Lexicon
10 Language-to-English DictionariesUnderclass
/ˈʌn.dɚˌklæs/Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
The lowest social stratum in a society, consisting of people who are persistently poor, unemployed, and socially marginalized.
"Economic restructuring has left a growing underclass struggling to find stable employment." - 2
A group of people outside or beneath the traditional class structure, often experiencing systemic deprivation.
"Sociologists study the structural factors that trap certain communities within the urban underclass."
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
Coined in English as a compound of 'under-' (denoting lower position or status) and 'class' (social grouping), emerging in the mid-20th century. Initially used in economic contexts, it gained widespread sociological prominence in the 1970s and 1980s to describe a segment of the population persistently trapped in poverty and socially marginalized from mainstream society.
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10 Global Lexicons: How "Underclass" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
sous-prolétariat
Transliteration: su-prolɛtaʁja
"La pauvreté persistante crée un sous-prolétariat urbain."
Unterklasse
Transliteration: ˈʊntɐˌklasə
"Soziale Ungleichheit führt oft zur Verfestigung einer Unterklasse."
sottoclasse
Transliteration: sottoˈklasse
"Le politiche sociali mirano a ridurre l'emarginazione della sottoclasse."
subclase
Transliteration: suˈklase
"Los economistas analizan el crecimiento de la subclase urbana."
subclasse
Transliteration: subˈklasi
"A exclusão social pode empurrar indivíduos para a subclasse."
वंचित वर्ग
Transliteration: vanchit varg
"समाज सुधारक वंचित वर्ग के उत्थान के लिए काम करते हैं।"
社会底层
Transliteration: shè huì dǐ céng
"经济变革对社会底层产生了深远的影响。"
하층민
Transliteration: haseungmin
"정부는 도시 하층민을 위한 복지 정책을 확대하고 있다."
アンダークラス
Transliteration: andākurasu
"格差社会の進行により新たなアンダークラスが形成されている。"
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