déclassé

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Having lost one's social status or prestige: "déclassé" describes a person who has fallen from a higher social class or rank to a lower one, often due to financial ruin, scandal, or personal failure.
   • Characteristic of a lower social class: It can also refer to something that is considered inferior, vulgar, or lacking the refinement associated with a higher social standing.

Usage Examples

• (They lost their social status.)
• (His behaviour was considered vulgar or below the expected standard.)
• (The area has declined in social quality.)

Advanced Usage

• "déclassé" as a social descriptor: Often used in literature or sociology to describe individuals or groups who have experienced downward social mobility.

  • The novel portrays a déclassé aristocrat struggling to adapt to middle-class life. (A noble who has lost their rank.)

• "déclassé" in cultural criticism: Can describe art, fashion, or taste that is deemed "lowbrow" or lacking sophistication.

  • Critics dismissed the film as déclassé, comparing it to cheap melodrama. (The film was considered artistically inferior.)

Variants and Related Words

• Déclassement (noun): the process or state of losing social status.
  • His déclassement was swift after the embezzlement scandal. (His fall from grace.)

Synonyms

• Declasse (adj): a variant spelling, more common in English usage.
• Degraded: lowered in rank, status, or quality.
• Declassed: removed from a social class; stripped of status.
• Vulgar: lacking sophistication or good taste; common.
• Common: of or belonging to the ordinary or lower classes.

Related Idioms

• To fall from grace: to lose status, respect, or favour.

  • The politician fell from grace after the corruption charges. (He became déclassé.)

• To come down in the world: to experience a decline in social or financial position.

  • After losing his fortune, he really came down in the world. (He became déclassé.)