snob
/snɑb/noun
snob is spelled S-N-O-B: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,418th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a derogatory noun, snob means “A person who wishes to be seen as a member of the upper classes or of some other elite (such as the masters of a certain craft) and who looks down on…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of snob is snobs.
How many letters and syllables are in snob?
| Letters | 4: S-N-O-B |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,418th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is snob?
Snob appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,418th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce snob?
- UK /snɒb/
- British /snɔb/
- US /snɑb/
Snob has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-snob.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with snob?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as snob from its last stressed vowel (/ɑb/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of snob
- snobs plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does snob mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
derogatoryinformalA person who wishes to be seen as a member of the upper classes or of some other elite (such as the masters of a certain craft) and who looks down on those perceived to have inferior or unrefined tastes, skills, etc.
an insufferable snob
- 2
colloquialA cobbler or shoemaker.
- 3
datedA member of the lower classes; a commoner.
- 4
archaicA workman who works for lower wages than his fellows, especially one who will not join a strike (a scab).
- 5
A townsman, as opposed to a gownsman.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Snob in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense person who seeks to be a member of the upper classes:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | snob |
| German | Snob, Wichtigtuer, Schnösel, Schickimicki |
| Portuguese | esnobe, snobe |
| Spanish | esnob, fresa, pijo, pituco, siútico, snob |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does snob come from?
Late 18th century dialectal English snob (“cobbler”), of unknown origin. Early senses of the word carried the meaning of "lower status"; it was then used to describe those seeking to imitate those of higher wealth or status. Folk etymology derives it from the Latin phrase sine nobilitate (“without nobility”), but early uses had no connection to this. The modern sense was popularized by William Makepeace Thackeray in The Book of Snobs (1848).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).