prole
/prəʊl
/informal, derogatory
noun
A member of the working class: the proles live in no-go areas with no jobs...
- Party members were tightly controlled, but the inner party made no attempt to turn the proles from spasmodic mob into party members.
- The new communist masters decided that Skoda would produce cars for the proles while the politburo and their apparatchiks would get a new luxury saloon built by Tatra.
- The rich will not bat an eyelid at paying £5 if it clears a few of the proles out of their way.
adjective
Working class: prole soldiers...
- It's largely in deference to prole sensibilities that buildings have no thirteenth floor and that thirteen is skipped over when racing cars are numbered.
- The types ranged through the British class system; actors rarely shuttled between posh parts and prole roles.
- Besides, the characters are too upwardly mobile for a standard prole opera.
Origin
Late 19th century: abbreviation of proletariat.