working stiff

work·ing stiff
UK/ˌwɜːkɪŋ ˈstɪf/US/ˌwɝkɪŋ ˈstɪf/

noun

An ordinary person who works in a non-management position, especially one who works for wages rather than a salary.

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Meanings

nounworking stiff (plural working stiffs)

plural working stiffs

  1. informalAn ordinary person who works in a non-management position, especially one who works for wages rather than a salary.

    The balance sheets of the middle class have improved as well. Good. But if working stiffs have come out OK, the richest have consolidated their gains.

    2023 May 28, Robert Armstrong, “The world wobbles; the luxury industry strides on”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 21
    1 more example

    Now he spends his time off from work hanging out with his diminutive best friend Vanellope (Sarah Silverman), the casual-dress princess hero of racing game Sugar Rush. Ralph enjoys life as a working stiff, though Vanellope is growing bored with her racing-world domination.

    2018 November 14, Jesse Hassenger, “Disney Goes Viral with an Ambitious, Overstuffed Wreck-It Ralph Sequel”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 21 Nov 2019

Origin

From working + stiff (“average person, usually male, of no particular distinction, skill, or education”).

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Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with working stiff

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Cite this entry
APA

working stiff. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/working%20stiff

MLA

“working stiff.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/working%20stiff. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “working stiff,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/working%20stiff.

Source: working stiff on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.