gentry

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: gen=try

CIDE DICTIONARY

gentry, n. [OE. genterie, gentrie, noble birth, nobility, cf. gentrise, and OF. gentelise, genterise, E. gentilesse, also OE. genteleri high-mindedness. See Gent, a., Gentle, a.].

•  Birth; condition; rank by birth.  Chaucer.  [1913 Webster]

  "She conquers him by high almighty Jove,
  By knighthood, gentry, and sweet friendship's oath."  [1913 Webster]
•  People of education and good breeding; in England, in a restricted sense, those between the nobility and the yeomanry.  Macaulay.  [1913 Webster]
•  Courtesy; civility; complaisance.  [1913 Webster]

  "To show us so much gentry and good will."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

gentry, n.pl.
1 the people next below the nobility in position and birth.
2 derog. people (these gentry).

Etymology

prob. f. obs. gentrice f. OF genterise var. of gentelise nobility f. gentil GENTLE

THESAURUS

gentry

Everyman, John Doe, Public, absolute, aristocracy, better sort, body politic, bona fide, citizenry, common man, commonwealth, community, community at large, cream, elite, estate, everybody, everyman, everyone, everywoman, factual, flower, folk, folks, general public, gentility, gentlefolk, gentlefolks, hard, honest, indubitable, landed gentry, lesser nobility, men, nation, nationality, people, people in general, persons, petite noblesse, polity, populace, population, positive, public, quality, real, reliable, samurai, sincere, society, squirearchy, state, sure-enough, true, trustworthy, unaffected, undesigning, undissembled, undoubted, unfeigned, unimpeachable, unquestionable, upper class, upper classes, upper crust, veritable, very, world, you and me

ROGET THESAURUS

gentry

Nobility

N nobility, rank, condition, distinction, optimacy, blood, pur sang, birth, high descent, order, quality, gentility, blue blood of Castile, ancien regime, high life, haute monde, upper classes, upper ten thousand, the four hundred, elite, aristocracy, great folks, fashionable world, peer, peerage, house of lords, house of peers, lords, lords temporal and spiritual, noblesse, noble, nobleman, lord, lordling, grandee, magnifico, hidalgo, daimio, daimyo, samurai, shizoku, don, donship, aristocrat, swell, three- tailed bashaw, gentleman, squire, squireen, patrician, laureate, gentry, gentlefolk, squirarchy, better sort magnates, primates, optimates, pantisocracy, king, atheling, prince, duke, marquis, marquisate, earl, viscount, baron, thane, banneret, baronet, baronetcy, knight, knighthood, count, armiger, laird, signior, seignior, esquire, boyar, margrave, vavasour, emir, ameer, scherif, sharif, effendi, wali, sahib, chevalier, maharaja, nawab, palsgrave, pasha, rajah, waldgrave, princess, begum, duchess, marchioness, countess, lady, dame, memsahib, Do$a, maharani, rani, personage of distinction, man of distinction, personage of rank, man of rank, personage of mark, man of mark, notables, notabilities, celebrity, bigwig, magnate, great man, star, superstar, big bug, big gun, great gun, gilded rooster, magni nominis umbra, every inch a king, noble, exalted, of rank, princely, titled, patrician, aristocratic, high-, well-born, of gentle blood, genteel, comme il faut, gentlemanlike, courtly, highly respectable, in high quarters, Adel sitzt im Gemuthe nicht im Gebluete, adelig und edel sind zweierlei, noblesse oblige.