blue-collar

adjective

blue-col·​lar ˈblü-ˈkä-lər 

1

: of, relating to, or constituting the class of wage earners whose duties call for the wearing of work clothes or protective clothing compare white-collar

2

: having characteristics associated with blue-collar workers: such as

a

: having, showing, or appealing to unpretentious or unsophisticated tastes

a new blue-collar serial … woven around a minor-league baseball team

—Steven Flax

b

: dependable and hard-working rather than showy or spectacular

a blue-collar athlete

Examples of blue-collar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Support within the poll also cut across all income categories too and across white- and blue-collar workers. —Shahar Ziv, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025

Yet there’s something apropos about that, fitting his blue-collar ethic. —Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2025

Like its predecessor, Roseanne, which aired from 1988 to 1997, the ABC series is about a blue-collar family struggling to make their way in the Midwest. —EW.com, 26 Feb. 2025

And the neighbors have evolved into a hearty mix of young parents, middle-aged artists and eccentrics, blue-collar lifers, and comfortable retirees. —Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 26 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1929, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for blue-collar

• footballer
• installer
• caller
• collar
• crawler
• dollar
• faller
• haller
• hauler
• holler
• scholar
• smaller

Kids Definition

blue-collar

adjective

ˈblü-ˈkäl-ər

: of or relating to the class of workers whose duties require work clothes