MERITOCRACY

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does meritocracy mean? 

• MERITOCRACY (noun)
  The noun MERITOCRACY has 2 senses:

1. a form of social system in which power goes to those with superior intellects

2. the belief that rulers should be chosen for their superior abilities and not because of their wealth or birth

  Familiarity information: MERITOCRACY used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MERITOCRACY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A form of social system in which power goes to those with superior intellects

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Hypernyms ("meritocracy" is a kind of...):

social organisation; social organization; social structure; social system; structure (the people in a society considered as a system organized by a characteristic pattern of relationships)

Derivation:

meritocratic (relating to or characteristic of a meritocracy)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The belief that rulers should be chosen for their superior abilities and not because of their wealth or birth

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("meritocracy" is a kind of...):

ideology; political orientation; political theory (an orientation that characterizes the thinking of a group or nation)

Derivation:

meritocratic (relating to or characteristic of a meritocracy)