Class Meaning
/klɑːs/Definition, CEFR level A1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA group, collection, category or set sharing characteristics or attributes.
nounA social grouping, based on job, wealth, etc. In Britain, society is commonly split into three main classes: upper class, middle class and working class.
Sentence Examples
You never have class or what?!
Class doesn't begin until eight-thirty.
We were in the same class at school.
CEFR Practice Quiz
Every student in the history ____ must submit a term paper by Friday.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
I have a history ____ at ten o'clock tomorrow morning.
Word Origin & History
From Middle French classe, from Latin classis (“a class or division of the people, assembly of people, the whole body of citizens called to arms, the army, the fleet, later a class or division in general”), from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- (“to call, shout”). Doublet of clas and classis.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"So I ask you to accept my statement that my critics fall into two classes: on the one hand my immediate accusers, and on the other those earlier ones whom I have mentioned; […]"
— 1954, Plato, translated by Hugh Tredennick, “Socrates on Trial: The Apology”, in The Last Days of Socrates (Penguin Classics), Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Books, →OCLC, page 21:
"The Magpies are unbeaten and enjoying their best run since 1994, although few would have thought the class of 2011 would come close to emulating their ancestors."
— 2011 October 1, Saj Chowdhury, “Wolverhampton 1-2 Newcastle”, in BBC Sport:
"Seeing the British establishment struggle with the financial sector is like watching an alcoholic […]. Until 2008 there was denial over what finance had become. […] But the scandals kept coming, and so we entered stage three – what therapists call "bargaining". A broad section of the political class now recognises the need for change but remains unable to see the necessity of a fundamental overhaul. Instead it offers fixes and patches."
— 2013 June 28, Joris Luyendijk, “Our banks are out of control”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 3, page 21:
"The City & South London was also the first British passenger railway to offer only one class."
— 2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A passenger's history of the Tube, Profile Books, →ISBN, page 101:
"The mark made by Cory a new Central A. U. mark and he appears to be the class of the field in this event."
— 1913 June 27, “The Crime Is Not in Making a Mistake, but in Repeating It.”, in Chicago Tribune:
Explore More A1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
Every student in the history ____ must submit a term paper by Friday.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
I have a history ____ at ten o'clock tomorrow morning.