Nobility
Society's upper crust
Nobility refers to a class of people holding hereditary titles and privileges, typically ranking below royalty: the French nobility, a member of the nobility.
The word also means the quality of being noble in character—moral excellence, dignity, or elevated virtue: the nobility of his sacrifice.
Noble birth and noble behavior are distinct but historically intertwined concepts.
High regard, moral dignity
- virtueMoral goodness or merit
- dignityInnate personal worth
- integrityMoral soundness and consistency
- magnanimityGenerous, noble spirit
grace · gallantry · chivalry · righteousness · moral · uprightness · principled · selflessness
Men of high rank
- dukesHighest hereditary nobles
- earlsBritish titled aristocrats
- baronsTitled nobles, lowest rank
- countsTotals or matters
marquess · viscounts · peerage · gentry · landed · titles · hereditary · lineage
Position in hierarchy
- statusOne's relative position
- casteInherited social division
- eliteSuperior select group
- upper classWealthiest societal stratum
privileged · ruling · highborn · blue blood · commoners · peasantry · feudal · social order
honor
High regard, moral dignity
magnanimity · grace · gallantry · chivalry · righteousness · moral · uprightness · principled · selflessness · benevolence
lords
Men of high rank
counts · marquess · viscounts · peerage · gentry · landed · titles · hereditary · lineage · bloodline
rank
Position in hierarchy
upper class · privileged · ruling · highborn · blue blood · commoners · peasantry · feudal · social order · stratification
samurai
Feudal Japanese military caste
boyar · junker · hidalgo · thane · chieftain · sheikh · sultan · khan · mandarin · patrician
Nobilitycommoners
Ordinary citizens, untitled
peasantry · common people · serfs · plebeians · proletariat
Nobilityvulgarity
Offensive coarseness in manner
crudeness · coarseness · boorishness · commonness · uncouthness
- French nobilityFrance's hereditary elite
- medieval nobilityFeudal ruling class
- titles of nobilityFormal aristocratic ranks
- English nobilityHereditary titled class
- British nobilityTitled upper class, UK
- landed nobilityAristocrats whose status derives from estates
noble, nobler, noblest, nobly, nobleness, nobleman, noblewoman, noblemen, noblewomen