plebe means A plebeian, a member of the lower class of Roman citizens. It carries an Arena rating of 1514, earned across 8 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, plebe ranks #7,281 of 15,164 for Most Satisfying to Say, #7,294 of 15,185 for Funniest Words, #7,308 of 15,145 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #7,322 of 15,126 for Most Beautiful Words.
plebe is pronounced /plib/.
Why “plebe” is a great word
A member of the common people, especially in ancient Rome, or a first-year student at a U.S. military academy. From Latin plēbs ('the common people, plebeian class'), probably via Middle French plebe ('commoners'), and later understood as a clipping of plebeian; first attested in English c. 1605. Unlike 'plebeian,' which carries the heavy, historical weight of social caste, or 'patrician,' its polished aristocratic opposite, 'plebe' possesses a brisk, almost clinical neutrality. It is the raw recruit's shaved head catching the morning light, the coarse wool of a Roman tunic, and the collective murmur of the unprivileged multitude—a word that marks not just a beginning, but the foundational, often unadorned, stratum from which all hierarchies are built.
Etymology
From Latin plēbs (“the plebeian class”), probably via Middle French plebe (“plebeians, commoners, the rabble”) and possibly later understood as a clipping of plebeian. Cognate with Italian plebe, Spanish plebe, Portuguese plebe.
noun
- A plebeian, a member of the lower class of Roman citizens.
- The plebs, the plebeian class.e.g.“All other roomes were free for the plebe or multitude.”
- The similar lower class of any area.
- A freshman cadet at a military academy.e.g.“My drill master, a young stripling, told me I was not so ‘gross’ as most other pleibs, the name of all new cadets.”
Words closest in meaning
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