Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Of secondary status.
- adjective Of or relating to travel accommodations ranking next below the highest or first class.
- adjective Considered or treated as inferior in status, rights, or privileges in comparison with some others.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Belonging to the class next after the first: specifically noting railway-carriages, steamer accommodations, and the like: as, second-class passengers; a second-class ticket.
- Inferior, in any sense: as, a second-class hotel.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Of the rank or degree below the best or highest; inferior; second-rate.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective
Inferior in quality or standing.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective of inferior status or quality
- noun not the highest rank in a classification
- noun not the highest quality in a classification
- adverb by second class conveyance
- noun a class of accommodations on a ship or train or plane that are less expensive than first class accommodations
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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It is not at all surprising that a people relegated to second-class citizenship should behave as second-class citizens.
A Renegade History of the United States Thaddeus Russell 2010
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To be Hispanic is not to be a second-class citizen.
American Grace Robert D. Putnam 2010
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Hook up with a group like Streets for All Seattle and insist that cyclists and pedestrians no longer be second-class commuters in the city.
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American servicewomen will continue to be viewed as second-class warriors if leaders push them to take up the customs of countries where women are second-class citizens.
Why American troops in Afghanistan shouldn't have to wear headscarves 2011
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Many members of the new ruling class taking shape in eastern Libya are from long-privileged tribes that were relegated to second-class status under Col.
Behind Libya Rifts, Tribal Politics Charles Levinson 2011
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It is a compromise that has since been rejected by leading gay-rights advocates in Maryland, who see civil unions as second-class treatment.
Md.'s top leaders cross Catholic hierarchy on gay marriage 2011
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White also pleaded guilty to fraternization for dating the second-class personnel clerk who entered
Heroes or Villains? 2010
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Civil rights hero and Medal of Freedom winner Rep. John Lewis D-Ga. has continuously and vocally made the link between the Civil Rights movement and the struggle of gay men and lesbians against inequality, discrimination and second-class citizenship.
What's with African American opposition to gay marriage in Maryland? 2011
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The Commission explained why "second-class information citizenship is looming" for many Americans, but commission reports tend not to be powerful tools for motivating grass-roots organizing.
Peter M. Shane: Digital Stories Dramatize Information's Role in the Lives of People and Communities Peter M. Shane 2011
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It is a compromise that has since been rejected by leading gay-rights advocates in Maryland, who see civil unions as second-class treatment.
Md.'s top leaders cross Catholic hierarchy on gay marriage 2011
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