social climber
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.
Mr. Restall’s Columbus was a man on the make, a social climber who used his marriage in 1479 to Felipa Moniz, the daughter of a minor aristocrat, to further his standing.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026
He is a vain social climber, easily fooled by his clever, beautiful young wife.
From Slate • May 4, 2023
Coon plays Bertha Russell, a relentless and monomaniacal social climber who, a century later, could have been an especially coldblooded CEO of a Fortune 500 firm.
From Washington Post • Jan. 23, 2022
This disconnect is represented most glaringly in Tom Wambsgans, a much-mocked social climber who married into the family, and effectively, the family business.
From New York Times • Jan. 9, 2022
As Joanne Kaufman reported in the Wall Street journal, Ms. Pittman was known in certain elevated circles more as a social climber than mountain climber.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
