Monday Word: Arriviste

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arriviste

[ar-ee-veest; French a-ree-veest]

noun:
a person who has recently acquired unaccustomed status, wealth, or success, especially by dubious means and without earning concomitant esteem.

examples:
1. Twyla had made a career out of choreography. The arrivistes made her mad. Work of Art by Adam Moss.
2. Her circle includes an aunt who is a champion wrestler, a resident Goth named Isabel and sultry Penny Century, an arriviste married to a wealthy magnate with horns on his head. Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2023
3. A local in Westchester County uses the word "arriviste" in a sentence explaining how Richard Gere cut down 200 trees in the neighbourhood without permission. Edmonton Sun, 2009

origin:
From French, dating back to 1900–05