Meanings
plural arrivistes
- derogatoryAn upstart or newcomer; nouveau riche; parvenu; an ambitious, brash or arrogant person who has yet to integrate with his or her new social group.
The second class in the bureaucracy, among whom are to be found most of the men occupying political posts just below the top, consists of arrivistes, who are enthusiastic Bolsheviks because of the material success of Bolshevism.
1920, Bertrand Russell, chapter V, in The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna person who has suddenly risen to a higher economic status but has not gained social acceptance of others in that class
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Frencharriver
- Frencharriviste
- Englisharriviste
Borrowed from French arriviste.
More words from French
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
arriviste. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arriviste
“arriviste.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arriviste. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “arriviste,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arriviste.
Source: arriviste on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.