TOP

Definition of caste noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

caste

noun
 
/kɑːst/
 
/kæst/
jump to other results
  1. [countable] any of the four main divisions of Hindu society, originally those made according to functions in society
    • the caste system
    • high-caste Brahmins
    see also Scheduled Caste
    Extra Examples
    • He belongs to one of the highest castes.
    • low-caste families
    • the Hindu caste system
    Topics People in societyc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • high
    • low
    verb + caste
    • belong to
    caste + noun
    • system
    phrases
    • a member of a caste
    • of high caste
    • of low caste
    • …
    See full entry
  2. [countable] a social class, especially one whose members do not allow others to join it
    • the ruling caste
    Topics People in societyc2
  3. [uncountable] the system of dividing society into classes based on differences in family origin, rank or wealthTopics People in societyc2
    4. see also half-caste
    Word Originmid 16th cent. (in the general sense ‘race, breed’): from Spanish and Portuguese casta ‘lineage, race, breed’, feminine of casto ‘pure, unmixed’, from Latin castus ‘chaste’.
See caste in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee caste in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: caste

Nearby words

perspective
noun
 
 
From the Word list
Oxford 3000
B2
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day