babbitt
|bab-bit|
/ˈbæbɪt/
materialistic, conformist middle-class person
Etymology
'babbitt' originates from the proper name 'Babbitt', coined by American author Sinclair Lewis in his 1922 novel 'Babbitt'.
'babbitt' changed from the proper name 'Babbitt' (the novel's protagonist) and eventually became the common noun 'babbitt' used to describe a conformist, materialistic middle-class person.
Initially, it meant the specific fictional character 'Babbitt'; over time it evolved into the general meaning 'a materialistic, conventionally conservative middle-class person'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a self-satisfied, materialistic, and conventionally conservative middle-class person; someone who unthinkingly conforms to social norms and values respectability and material success.
Critics of the city's development called many local businessmen babbitts for putting profit and appearances above civic life.
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Noun 2
the attitudes, behavior, or spirit typical of such a person (babbittry); narrow-minded adherence to middle-class values and conventions.
The novel satirizes the babbittry of small-town life in early 20th-century America.
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Last updated: 2025/12/22 23:07