social climber

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Mr. Restall’s Columbus was a man on the make, a social climber who used his marriage in 1479 to Felipa Moniz, the daughter of a minor aristocrat, to further his standing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

Instead, Wiig takes center stage as Maxine Simmons, an ambitious social climber in the rarefied Palm Beach society.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2024

He is a vain social climber, easily fooled by his clever, beautiful young wife.

From Slate • May 4, 2023

I knew Kushner as an Olympic-level social climber, and he lards his memoir with famous names, however distant the acquaintance: Bono, Billy Joel, Kim Kardashian.

From Washington Post • Aug. 26, 2022

Or was she an overly forward social climber?

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock