parvenu

See also: Parvenü

English

WOTD – 4 August 2008

Etymology

(deprecated template usage) Borrowed from French parvenu, past participle of parvenir, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin perveniō (“arrive, reach”).

See also parvenue f. Parvenu/parvenue is one of the few words in English which have two forms distinguished according to gender.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɑː.və.njuː/, /ˈpɑː.və.nuː/
• IPA^(key): /ˈpɑɹ.və.nju/, /ˈpɑɹ.və.nu/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

  ,

  Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uː

Noun

parvenu (plural parvenus)

1. A person who has risen, climbed up, or has been promoted to a higher social class, especially through acquisition of wealth, rights, or political authority but has not gained social acceptance by those within that new class.
   • 2001, January 31, Francis Wheen, "The whole truth about Peter's friends", The Guardian

     But the favourite's power and influence provoke intense ill-feeling among other courtiers, who regard him as a sinister, usurping parvenu with ideas above his station, or perhaps even a sorcerer.

Derived terms

• parvenuess

Synonyms

• arriviste

See also

• nouveau riche

Translations

a person who has risen, climbed up, or has been promoted to a higher social class

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 暴發戶／暴发户 (zh) (bàofāhù), 暴发户 (zh) (bàofāhù), 新貴／新贵 (zh) (xīnguì), 新贵 (zh) (xīnguì)

• Dutch: parvenu (nl)
• Estonian: tõusik
• Finnish: nousukas (fi)
• French: parvenu (fr) m, parvenue (fr) f
• German: Emporkömmling (de) m, Parvenü (de) m
• Greek: νεόπλουτος (el) m (neóploutos)
• Icelandic: stéttskiptingur m, uppskafningur (is) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Ido: parvenuo (io)
• Italian: parvenu (it) m
• Japanese: 成り金 (なりきん, narikin), 成り上がり者 (なりあがりもの, nariagari-mono), 出来星 (ja) (できぼし, dekiboshi)
• Polish: parweniusz (pl) m, nowobogacki (pl), nuworysz (pl) m, dorobkiewicz m
• Portuguese: parvenu (pt) m or f
• Russian: парвеню́ (ru) m (parvenjú), нувори́ш (ru) m (nuvoríš), вы́скочка (ru) m or f (výskočka)
• Spanish: advenedizo (es) m
• Swedish: parveny (sv) c, uppkomling c

Adjective

parvenu (not comparable)

1. Being a parvenu; also, like, having the characteristics of, or associated with a parvenu.
   • 2001, Norman Birnbaum, After Progress, Oxford University Press,

     The Progressives were of the educated middle class, angry at the rule of parvenu financiers and industrialists.

   • 2003, Edith Grossman (translator), Gabriel García Márquez, Living to Tell the Tale (2002), Chapter 1,

     The majority of the adults, however, viewed Luisa Santiaga as the precious jewel of a rich and powerful family whom a parvenu telegraph operator was courting not for love but self-interest.

Translations

being a parvenu; also, like or having the characteristics of a parvenu

• Estonian: tõusiklik
• Finnish: nousukasmainen (fi)
• German: parvenühaft
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Greek: νεόπλουτος (el) m (neóploutos)
• Hungarian: parvenü, felkapaszkodott
• Spanish: advenedizo (es)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Italian: ^{(please verify)} parvenu (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Latin: ^{(please verify)} pervenitus m, ^{(please verify)} pervenita f

---

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French parvenu.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌpɑr.vəˈny/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: par‧ve‧nu
• Rhymes: -y

Noun

parvenu m or f (plural parvenu's, diminutive parvenuutje n)

1. parvenu (a social climber not accepted by his or her new milieu, often due to crassness)

---

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /paʁ.və.ny/

Adjective

parvenu (feminine parvenue, masculine plural parvenus, feminine plural parvenues)

1. parvenu

Noun

parvenu m (plural parvenus, feminine parvenue)

1. parvenu

Descendants

• → English: parvenu
• → Dutch: parvenu
• → German: Parvenü
• → Italian: parvenu
• → Portuguese: parvenu

Verb

parvenu (feminine parvenue, masculine plural parvenus, feminine plural parvenues)

1. past participle of parvenir

Further reading

• “parvenu”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

---

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from French parvenu.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -u

Noun

parvenu m (uncountable)

1. parvenu

---

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from French parvenu.

Noun

1. parvenu (a person who has risen to a higher social class)