# elite

Pronunciation: say "i-LEET" US /ɪˈlit/, UK/AUS /ɪˈliːt/

## Noun

1. A social group or class whose members hold superior wealth, power, or privilege in society; also one member of that group.
   - Simple: A small group of people who have more money, power, or status than everyone else.
   - _The political elite gathered at the summit to guard their shared interests._
   - _She was born into an elite that had governed the region for generations._
3. A person who ranks among the best at a particular task or skill.
   - Simple: A person who is among the very best at something.
   - _Among programmers, he is widely regarded as an elite._
   - _The tournament draws elites from every discipline in the field._
5. A typewriter typeface that prints 12 characters per inch.
   - Simple: A typewriter print size that fits 12 letters into each inch.
   - _He set the typewriter to elite for the dense quarterly report._
   - _Documents typed in elite squeezed noticeably more text onto each line._

## Adjective

2. Representing the choicest or most carefully selected members of a group.
   - Simple: Being among the very best or most carefully chosen in a group.
   - _The academy admits only elite candidates after rigorous testing._
   - _These elite athletes represent the top fraction of their sport._
4. Born into a noble or upper-class family, or holding a high position in society.
   - Simple: Coming from a family of high birth or important social rank.
   - _His elite lineage granted him a seat among the nobility._
   - _The salon welcomed only guests of elite birth._

## Origin

It comes from Middle English elit and Old French elit, eslit ("chosen, elected"), the past participle of elire ("to choose, elect"), which goes back to Latin eligere ("to choose, elect"), with past participle electus.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/elite (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).