"great unwashed" meaning in English

See great unwashed in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: /ˌɡɹeɪt ʌnˈwɒʃt/ [Received-Pronunciation], /ˌɡɹeɪt ʌnˈwɔːʃt/ [US], /ˌɡɹeɪt ʌnˈwɑːʃt/ [US] Audio: en-us-great unwashed.ogg , en-au-great unwashed.ogg
Etymology: Attributed by many to Edmund Burke, the first published use of the phrase was by Edward Bulwer-Lytton in a dedicatory epistle for 1830, Paul Clifford. Head templates: {{en-noun|p}} great unwashed pl (plural only)
  1. (idiomatic, derogatory) The general populace, particularly the working class. Wikipedia link: Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Paul Clifford Tags: derogatory, idiomatic, plural, plural-only Categories (topical): Collectives Synonyms: hoi polloi, unwashed masses, great unhosed, commonalty Translations (a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class): vulgum pecus [masculine] (French), buractwo [neuter] (Polish), tłuszcza [feminine] (Polish), vulg [neuter] (Romanian), prostime [feminine] (Romanian)

Alternative forms

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          "text": "[T]he gentlemen of the inns of court, and the gentlemen of the universities… live in abodes which were erected long before the custom of cleanliness and decency obtained among us. … Gentlemen, there can be but little doubt that your ancestors were the Great Unwashed: and in the Temple especially, it is pretty certain, that only under the greatest difficulties and restrictions the virtue which has been pronounced to be next to godliness could have been practised at all.",
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          "ref": "1995, Christina Blizzard, Right Turn: How the Tories Took Ontario:",
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        "(idiomatic, derogatory) The general populace, particularly the working class."
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          "word": "unwashed masses"
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          "word": "great unhosed"
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          "code": "fr",
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          "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
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          "code": "pl",
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          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
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        },
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          "code": "ro",
          "lang": "Romanian",
          "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
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        },
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          "code": "ro",
          "lang": "Romanian",
          "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "prostime"
        }
      ],
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        "Paul Clifford"
      ]
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          "text": "[T]he gentlemen of the inns of court, and the gentlemen of the universities… live in abodes which were erected long before the custom of cleanliness and decency obtained among us. … Gentlemen, there can be but little doubt that your ancestors were the Great Unwashed: and in the Temple especially, it is pretty certain, that only under the greatest difficulties and restrictions the virtue which has been pronounced to be next to godliness could have been practised at all.",
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          "word": "unwashed masses"
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          "word": "great unhosed"
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      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "vulgum pecus"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "buractwo"
    },
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      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "tłuszcza"
    },
    {
      "code": "ro",
      "lang": "Romanian",
      "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "vulg"
    },
    {
      "code": "ro",
      "lang": "Romanian",
      "sense": "a contemptuous term for the populace, particularly the working class",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "prostime"
    }
  ],
  "word": "great unwashed"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-11-06 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-10-02 using wiktextract (fbeafe8 and 7f03c9b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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