Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Definitions

parvenu

[pahr-vuh-noo, -nyoo, pahr-vuh-noo, -nyoo] / ˈpɑr vəˌnu, -ˌnyu, ˌpɑr vəˈnu, -ˈnyu /
NOUN
newly rich
Synonyms


NOUN
upstart
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Chenoweth, who is as gleaming as a holiday ornament on Liberace’s Christmas tree, arrives at a canny balance of quixotic generosity and parvenu carelessness in her portrayal of a woman she refuses to lampoon.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 9, 2025

But Corya is no vulgar, narcissistic bully and parvenu.

From Slate • May 21, 2020

In one scene, Trimalchio, a parvenu who serves dishes like a boiled calf wearing a helmet, decides that a mere party isn’t enough and holds a mock funeral for himself.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2016

As befits such a status-obsessed parvenu, Monsieur Jourdain has arrived in style, ushered along by the energetic director Denis Podalydès, a popular polymath in France who also writes and acts on both screen and stage.

From New York Times • Jul. 21, 2016

The millionaire and the parvenu found him invaluable.

From The International Monthly, Vol. II, No. I December 1, 1850 by Various




Vocabulary lists containing parvenu