clase media
/klase medja/from spelling rulesfeminine
The English phrase middle class is translated into Spanish as clase media.
clase media refers to a social and economic class. When you are describing a person's background or a specific type of neighborhood, it is common to use the preposition de before the phrase, resulting in de clase media.
Meaning: social and economic class (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun clase is feminine, which requires the adjective media to also be in its feminine form. If you need to express the plural 'middle classes', both the noun and the adjective must be pluralized to clases medias.
Did you know?
- In Spanish, the word clase also means 'lesson' or 'course', so a student saying they are in clase media could be misinterpreted as being in the middle of a lesson.
- The word clase shares a common ancestor with the English word 'class', both tracing back to the Latin classis, which originally referred to a division of citizens or a fleet of ships.
- The term clase media is often paired with aspiracional in Latin American marketing to describe people who are not yet middle class but strive to reach it.
Examples in context
- Soy de clase media.I'm middle class.Tatoeba #3562772 by ficion, translation #3330611 by CK
- No soy de clase media.I'm not middle class.Tatoeba #3562773 by ficion, translation #3330610 by CK
- María vive en un barrio de clase media.Maria lives in a middle class neighborhood.Tatoeba #1390999 by hayastan, translation #1391671 by CP
- El crecimiento de la clase media es fundamental para el desarrollo del país.The growth of the middle class is essential for the country's development.
- En mi barrio, la mayoría somos gente de clase media.In my neighborhood, most of us are middle-class people.
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alejandro and Lucía are discussing their childhood neighborhoods.
- AlejandroCrecí en una familia de clase media.I grew up in a middle class family.
- LucíaYo también, mi barrio era muy tranquilo.Me too, my neighborhood was very quiet.
- Alejandro¿Crees que la clase media está desapareciendo?Do you think the middle class is disappearing?
- LucíaSí, Lucía piensa que es más difícil ahora.Yes, Lucía thinks it is harder now.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “middle class” translations and entries clase media, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries clase, media, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
