n.
Pronunciation: ' bu ̇ rzh- ˌ wä also ' bu ̇ zh- or ' büzh- or bu ̇ rzh- '
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle French, from Old French burgeis townsman, from burc, borg town, from Latin burgus
Date: circa 1565
1 : of, relating to, or characteristic of the townsman or of the social middle class
2 : marked by a concern for material interests and respectability and a tendency toward mediocrity
3 : dominated by commercial and industrial interests : CAPITALISTIC
– bour · geois · ifi · ca · tion \ ˌ bu ̇ (r)zh- ˌ wä-z ə -f ə - ' k ā -sh ə n \ noun
– bour · geois · ify \ bu ̇ (r)zh- ' wä-z ə - ˌ f ī \ verb