gentlemen of leisure
Rich men relaxing
Gentlemen of leisure are men who don't need to work for a living—whether through inherited wealth, retirement, or comfortable circumstances.
The phrase carries a whiff of the 19th century, when idle gentlemen filled their days with clubs, hunting, and social calls.
Today it's often used ironically for unemployed men or retirees: Since losing his job, he's been a gentleman of leisure.
- aristocratsHereditary ruling class
- upper classWealthiest societal stratum
- flaneurIdle urban observer
- man about townFashionable social figure
- sybariteLover of lavish comfort
dandy · nobility · patrician · dilettante · grandeur · rentier · idle · bon vivant · breeding · white tie · social season · Gilded Age · clubhouse · grand tour · noble · country club · smoking jacket · afternoon tea
gentlemen of leisurelaborers
Workers doing physical tasks
breadwinners · wage earners · workingmen · toilers · manual laborers
gentlemen of leisurethe working class
Laborers earning wages
paupers · proletarians · the poor · the proletariat · servants
gentleman, gentlemen, leisure, gentle, gently, gentleness, gentility, gentry, leisurely