thetes means the lowest social class of citizens in ancient Athens. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
Why “thetes” is a great word
THETES — [Noun] The landless laborers who comprised the lowest class of full citizens in ancient Athens. From Ancient Greek θῆτες (thêtes), plural of θής (thḗs, "hired laborer, serf"), from the root of τίθημι (títhēmi, "to place, set"). Unlike the zeugitae, defined by their yoke of oxen, or the Spartan helots, who were bound serfs, the thetes were free men whose poverty was their civic rank. They were the oarsmen pulling the trireme, the hirelings threshing another's grain, and the murmuring voices in the outermost rows of the Assembly—the human foundation upon whose labor the celebrated architecture of democracy was uneasily balanced.
Etymology
From Ancient Greek θῆτες (thêtes), plural of θής (thḗs, “hired laborer”).
noun
- The lowest social class of citizens in ancient Athens.