plural gentries
1
a
: upper or ruling class : aristocracy
b
: a class whose members are entitled to bear a coat of arms though not of noble rank
especially
: wealthy landowners having such status
2
: people of a specified class or kind : folks
no real heroes or heroines among the academic gentry—
R. G. Hanvey
R. G. Hanvey3
a
: the condition or rank of a gentleman
b
obsolete
: the qualities appropriate to a person of gentle (see gentle entry 1 sense 4a) birth
especially
: courtesy
Examples of gentry in a Sentence
poor tenant farmers working for landed gentry
the old-line yachting gentry frowns on vulgar displays of wealth
Recent Examples on the Web
Extreme caricatures of secondary figures (ancient maid, assorted daft gentry) keep us at an even further remove than the cameras do.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Because the imperial bureaucracy wasn’t large and did not penetrate to small towns or villages, much of local life was run by this gentry.
—Ian Johnson, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2025
Walter may have immigrated to England from Ireland; his wife, meanwhile, was a member of a lower gentry English family.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Mar. 2025
Although most of the framers of the Constitution were landed gentry and the first U.S. presidents were wealthy by the standards of the day, their wealth was relatively modest by comparison with that of today’s ultrarich.
—Zachary Karabell, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gentry
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Jesse Green, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Because the imperial bureaucracy wasn’t large and did not penetrate to small towns or villages, much of local life was run by this gentry.
—Ian Johnson, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2025
Walter may have immigrated to England from Ireland; his wife, meanwhile, was a member of a lower gentry English family.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Mar. 2025
Although most of the framers of the Constitution were landed gentry and the first U.S. presidents were wealthy by the standards of the day, their wealth was relatively modest by comparison with that of today’s ultrarich.
—Zachary Karabell, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gentry
Cite this Entry
“Gentry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gentry. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
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