💰 Newly rich people ✨ Showy and rich

nouveau riche

1 8.1

Very showy and expensive in a way that shows someone is newly rich

adjective
/nuːˈvoʊ ˈriːʃ/

Offensive

: nuevo rico

Many nouveau riche individuals often feel the need to showcase their wealth through extravagant purchases.

It's full blown Christian, you know, nouveau riche vibes.

Examples

The restaurant's décor was an example of nouveau riche style, blending gaudy decorations with lavish furnishings.
It's full blown Christian, you know, nouveau riche vibes.

I've Had It
It is so luxe, over the top nouveau riche, ugly as hell.
The party had a distinct nouveau riche atmosphere, with guests flaunting their expensive outfits and luxury cars.

Antonyms

tasteful

41 3.9

Showing good style and polite manners

refined

Formal

4 4.1

Showing elegant, polite manners and good taste

How Showy

garish

16 6.7

nouveau riche

Offensive

1 8.1

flashy

69 4.1

showy

8 3.2

Surface Forms

nouveau riche positive

Morphology

nouveau + riche

If a learner knows the French constituents ('nouveau' = new, 'riche' = rich), they can readily infer the core meaning 'newly rich' because the phrase is literally compositional. However, the expression is a foreign loan with idiomatic connotations (ostentatious display of wealth) and an atypical word order in English usage, so the full pragmatic nuance is not fully predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Nouveau riche comes from the French words nouveau ('new') and riche ('rich'). The word began as a way to describe showy things bought by new money, so when we call a style or object 'nouveau riche' we mean it looks flashy and is meant to 'show off' wealth rather than to be quietly tasteful.