white-collar

[hwahyt-kol-er, wahyt-] / ˈʰwaɪtˈkɒl ər, ˈwaɪt- /

ADJECTIVE

non-manual

Synonyms

STRONGEST

clerical salaried

WEAK

executive office professional

NOUN

office worker

Synonyms

STRONG

administrator clerk employee executive jobholder manager supervisor worker

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.

And he doesn’t understand that because his parents had white-collar jobs.

From Slate • Apr. 10, 2026

Even amid cataclysmic energy shocks and relentless spates of white-collar layoffs, the American economic engine appears to be humming along smoothly.

From Slate • Apr. 3, 2026

The kind of job insecurity that once seemed the province of hourly, blue-collar jobs haunts white-collar professions these days.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

Artificial intelligence could reshape entry-level white-collar work, adding fresh uncertainty to India's already fragile school-to-jobs pipeline.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

Who would have thought that such a melange of black and white, male and female, blue-collar and white-collar workers, those who worked with their hands and those who worked with numbers, was actually possible?

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly