# elitism vs elitist

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### elitism
*noun · IPA /ɪˈliːtɪzəm/ · frequency rank #45,354*
The belief that a society or system should be run by an elite.

### elitist
*adjective · IPA /ɪˈliːtɪst/ · frequency rank #26,408*
Of or relating to elitism.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/elitism-vs-elitist