the Four Hundred
/ðə ˌfɔː ˈhʌndrəd/
/ðə ˌfɔːr ˈhʌndrəd/
- a US name for members of high society in New York. The origin of the term is thought to be a list of guests invited to a social event in New York City in 1892 that was reduced to the 400 most important people, because the person inviting them had a ballroom that could only hold that number.