What does underclass mean?
An underclass is a group of people regarded as occupying the lowest position in a society's social or economic hierarchy. The term most often refers to people who experience persistent poverty, limited educational or employment opportunities, discrimination, and exclusion from social institutions. It can also be used in an older or more restricted educational sense for students considered to rank below their classmates. In contemporary usage, “underclass” often carries political and social implications: it suggests that disadvantage is connected to broader structures of inequality rather than arising only from individual choices. Because the term classifies people by perceived social position, writers may prefer more specific descriptions when discussing particular communities or experiences. Even so, it remains a forceful word for naming severe and systematic inequality within a society.
nounA social group regarded as occupying the lowest position in society, especially people experiencing poverty, discrimination, and limited access to social or economic opportunities. In a more restricted educational sense, the term can refer to students considered to rank below other pupils.
- A social group considered to occupy the lowest position in the social or economic hierarchy, especially people who are poor, excluded, or denied opportunities.
- A group of pupils or students regarded as ranking below other members of a school or educational institution.
"The community center offered evening classes to members of the city's underclass who had never had access to professional training."
"The report examines how policies affect the urban underclass."
"She was assigned to the underclass, where she was expected to compete for the few places available to students below her year."
Used when referring to distinct underclass groups in different places, periods, or contexts.
"The study compares the urban underclasses of several major cities."
“Underclass” joined “under” to “class” to name a group defined by its position at the bottom of society.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does underclass come from?
“Underclass” was formed in English by combining the prefix “under” with “class.” “Class” comes through French from Latin classis, a term associated originally with a fleet or a grouping or rank, and developed into a word for social rank or category. The compound “underclass” appeared in nineteenth-century English and was used in both educational and social contexts before its principal modern sense became the lowest social stratum. Its formation parallels related English compounds such as “subclass” and “superclass,” which draw on the same Latin root through “class.”
How underclass is actually used
The word is common in sociological, political, and journalistic writing. It is often associated with structural inequality, although some speakers consider it potentially patronizing when used to describe people as a homogeneous group. The educational sense is now much less common than the social sense.