the rich
Society's upper crust
The rich refers collectively to wealthy people as a social class: The rich get richer while the poor get poorer.
The construction uses an adjective with *the* to denote a group sharing that quality—parallel to *the poor*, *the young*, *the elderly*.
It often carries political or economic connotations, framing wealth as a dividing line in society.
- mansionLarge, stately home
- conspicuous consumptionFlaunting wealth through purchases
- goldElement seventy-nine
- eliteSuperior select group
- yacht clubPrivate boating organization
oligarchs · the one percent · trust fund · silver spoon · estate · affluence · aristocracy · upper crust · high society · inequality · classism · power brokers · pearls · financiers · gated community · opulence · fortune · wealth gap
- The Adjectivesthe deaf, the poor, the elderly