inferiors
Those below you
Inferiors are people lower in rank, status, or ability relative to someone else.
The word implies hierarchy—military officers have inferiors, as do managers and aristocrats.
He treated his inferiors with contempt.
The term can sound dismissive or outdated, since modern workplaces often avoid language that emphasizes status differences.
Lower-ranked employees
- subordinatesThose ranked below
- juniorsLower-ranked members
- minionsObedient subordinates of power
- underclassLowest socioeconomic group
vassals · serfs · dependents · lackeys · flunkies · peons · attendants · servants
Of humble social standing
- underprivilegedLacking usual social advantages
- disadvantagedLacking social or economic resources
- marginalizedPushed to society's edges
- second-classLower in rank
commoners · plebeians · peasantry · working-class · proletariat · have-nots · untouchables · outcasts
Yielding to another's judgment
- obedienceCompliance with authority
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- submissivenessDisposition to obey others
- servilityExcessive willingness to please
docility · meekness · subservience · acquiescence · kowtowing · bowing · humility · dutifulness
Demeaning air of superiority
- disdainScornful disregard
- contemptDisdainful disregard
- belittlementVerbal diminishing of worth
- dismissivenessAttitude of casual disregard
patronizing · snubbing · disrespect · degradation · humiliation · exploitation · mistreatment · discrimination
underlings
Lower-ranked employees
- subordinatesThose ranked below
- juniorsLower-ranked members
- minionsObedient subordinates of power
underclass · vassals · serfs · dependents · lackeys · flunkies · peons · attendants · servants · acolytes
lower-class
Of humble social standing
- underprivilegedLacking usual social advantages
- disadvantagedLacking social or economic resources
- marginalizedPushed to society's edges
second-class · commoners · plebeians · peasantry · working-class · proletariat · have-nots · untouchables · outcasts · lowborn
deference
Yielding to another's judgment
- obedienceCompliance with authority
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- submissivenessDisposition to obey others
servility · docility · meekness · subservience · acquiescence · kowtowing · bowing · humility · dutifulness · yielding
condescension
Demeaning air of superiority
- disdainScornful disregard
- contemptDisdainful disregard
- belittlementVerbal diminishing of worth
dismissiveness · patronizing · snubbing · disrespect · degradation · humiliation · exploitation · mistreatment · discrimination · classism
- inferiority complexChronic sense of inadequacy
- inferiority complexesBeliefs of being lesser
- inferior vena cavaMajor vein to heart
- inferior colliculusMidbrain auditory relay nucleus
- inferior turbinateLowest nasal cavity bone
- inferior ovaryOvary below floral attachments