the hoi polloi

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• (the) hoi polloi — the hoi polloi UK [ˌhɔɪ pəˈlɔɪ] US noun [plural] an insulting word for ordinary people who are not rich or well educated Thesaurus: ordinary people or personsynonym …   Useful english dictionary

• the hoi polloi — UK [ˌhɔɪ pəˈlɔɪ] / US noun [plural] an insulting word for ordinary people who are not rich or well educated …   English dictionary

• Hoi polloi — (Greek: ), an expression meaning the many (literally: the citizens ) in Greek is used in English to denote the masses or the people , usually in a derogatory sense. For example, I ve secured a private box for the play so we don t have to watch… …   Wikipedia

• hoi polloi — The normal construction is the hoi polloi, meaning ‘the masses, the common people’. The fact that hoi in the original Greek expression (literally ‘the many’) already means ‘the’ is therefore ignored; objection to this now seems pedantic, is… …   Modern English usage

• hoi polloi —  The many, the masses; people who have a high opinion of themselves (Greek).  ► “Always an iconoclast, Mr. [Oliver] Stone has begun to rent his western getaway to the hoi polloi.” (Wall Street Journal, Jan. 19, 1996, p. A1) …   American business jargon

• Hoi Polloi (1935 film) — Infobox Film name = Hoi Polloi caption = director = Del Lord writer = Felix Adler Helen Howard (uncredited) starring = Moe Howard Larry Fine Curly Howard Harry Holman Robert Graves Phyllis Crane Geneva Mitchell William Irving Bud Jamison James C …   Wikipedia

• hoi polloi — /hɔɪ pəˈlɔɪ / (say hoy puh loy) noun the, the common people; the masses: *she should on no account travel down to Sydney with the hoi polloi aboard the packet. –peter carey, 1988. {Greek oi the + polloi many} Usage: This Greek borrowing… …  

• hoi polloi —    Two problems here. The first is that hoi polloi means the masses, the common populace, and not the elite, as is often thought. The second problem is that in Greek hoi means the so to speak of the hoi polloi is tantamount to saying the the… …   Dictionary of troublesome word

• hoi polloi — This is a Greek term meaning the masses, the many. If you use it, do not say the hoi polloi, because hoi is Greek for the : This dictator thinks of everyone in the country as hoi polloi …   Dictionary of problem words and expressions

• hoi polloi — [ˌhɔɪ pɒ lɔɪ] plural noun derogatory the common people. Origin C17: Gk, lit. the many . Usage Strictly speaking, the phrase hoi polloi translates as ‘the many’. Some traditionalists insist that it should not be used with the, since that would be… …   English new terms dictionary

• hoi polloi — [[t]hɔ͟ɪ pəlɔ͟ɪ[/t]] N PLURAL If someone refers to the hoi polloi, they are referring in a humorous or rather rude way to ordinary people, in contrast to rich, well educated, or upper class people. Monstrously inflated costs are designed to keep… …   English dictionary