establishment

From Middle English *establishment, stablishment, stablisshement, from Old French establissement (Modern French établissement), from the verb establir. Equivalent to establish +‎ -ment.

• IPA^(key): /ɪˈstæblɪʃmənt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: estab‧lish‧ment

establishment (countable and uncountable, plural establishments)

2. The act or process of establishing; a ratifying or ordaining; settlement; confirmation.

   Since their establishment of the company in 1984, they have grown into a global business.

   • 1787, Article Seven of the United States Constitution:

     The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall be sufficient for the Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the Same.

4. The state of being established, founded, etc.; fixed state.

   The firm celebrated twenty years since their establishment by updating their look.

6. That which is established; as a form of government, a permanent organization, business or force, or the place where one is permanently fixed for residence.

   Pedro's is a fine establishment serving a variety of delicious food.

   exposing the shabby parts of the establishment

8. The ruling class or authority group in a society; especially, an entrenched authority dedicated to preserving the status quo.

   Alternative form: Establishment (when construed as a proper noun)

   It was clear that they viewed the British establishment as qualitatively different from the French establishment.

   It's often necessary to question the establishment to get things done.

   • 2002 November 22, Steven Eke, “Russia's rocky relationship with Nato”, in BBC World Service‎^[1]:

     But there is also real opposition to Nato expansion - and even to Nato's continued existence after the Cold War.
     This is a view shared by a very large part of Russia's military and foreign affairs establishment.

   • 2013 June 28, Joris Luyendijk, “Our banks are out of control”, in The Guardian Weekly‎^[2], volume 189, number 3, page 21:

     Seeing the British establishment struggle with the financial sector is like watching an alcoholic who still resists the idea that something drastic needs to happen for him to turn his life around. Until 2008 there was denial over what finance had become. When a series of bank failures made this impossible, there was widespread anger, leading to the public humiliation of symbolic figures.

   • 2024 August 14, “Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin removed from office in shock court ruling”, in CNN‎^[3]:

     The verdict means more upheaval for Thailand’s already turbulent political landscape, in which those pushing for change have frequently run afoul of the establishment – a small but powerful clique of military, royalist and business elites.

   • 2025 March 18, Samuel Moyn, “Can Democrats Learn to Dream Big Again?”, in The New York Times‎^[4], →ISSN, archived from the original on 27 March 2025:

     This story of how American originality lost its way is arresting and well told. On an alternate timeline without Donald Trump in office dismantling the American scientific establishment and Elon Musk kneecapping the American state, it might have been the manifesto of a new politics.

10. The number of staff required to run a department or organisation (often used in the context of healthcare and other public services).

    The cancer department has an establishment of 10 doctors and 30 nurses.

12. (Christianity) The institution and official status of a church as a state church, especially that of the Church of England and historically of Ireland.

    Not all Anglicans have supported establishment.

• (act of establishing, that which is established): foundation

• (antonym(s) of “act of establishing”): abolition
• (antonym(s) of “institution of a church as state church”): disestablishment

• → Polish: establishment

• antidisestablishmentarianism
• powers that be

Borrowed from English establishment.

• (Central) IPA^(key): /əsˈtabliʃmən/^[1]

establishment m (plural establishments)

1. (political science) (the) establishment (the dominant forces in society, especially when devoted to preserving the status quo)

• “establishment”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “establishment” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.

Borrowed from English establishment.

establishment

1. (sometimes derogatory, usually uncountable) (the) establishment (entrenched power systems)
   • 2017, Jens-Martin Eriksen, Frederik Stjernfelt, Adskillelsens politik, Lindhardt og Ringhof, →ISBN:

     Forestillingen om klasse frem for religion er også farlig for establishmentet her i landet, den ville kunne få hele det politiske system til at bryde sammen, hvis de fattige malajer, muslimerne, ville indse, at de har mere til fælles med de fattige kinesere og de fattige indere, end de har med de velhavende muslimer.

     The view of class rather than religion is also dangerous to the establishment in this country, it would be able to make the entire political system collapse, if the poor Malays, the Muslims, were to realize that they have more in common with the poor Chinese and poor Indians, than they do with the wealthy Muslims.

   • 2015, Jan Guillou, Den demokratiske terrorist, Modtryk, →ISBN:

     Marxistleninisterne eksisterede næsten ikke mere, de fleste gamle kammerater var blevet en del af establishmentet, og den antiimperialistiske bevægelse var stort set gået i sig selv igen.

     The Marxist-Leninists practically didn't exist anymore, most of the old comrades had become a part of the establishment, and the anti-imperialist movement had practically receded into itself once more.

• etablissement (establishment, general sense)

Borrowed from English establishment. Doublet of etablissement.

• IPA^(key): /ɛsˈtɛ.blɪʃ.mənt/, /ɛsˈtɛ.blɪs.mənt/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: es‧ta‧blish‧ment

establishment n (plural establishments, diminutive establishmentje n)

1. establishment, elite (ruling authority or class)

Unadapted borrowing from English establishment.

• IPA^(key): /ˈestɑblismentːi/, [ˈe̞s̠tɑ̝bˌlis̠me̞n̪t̪ːi]
• Rhymes: -ismentːi

establishment (informal)

1. establishment (ruling class)

• eliitti
• valtaapitävät
• yläluokka

• “establishment”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎^[5] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2 July 2023

Borrowed from English establishment.

• IPA^(key): /ɛs.ta.bliʃ.mɑ̃/

establishment m

1. establishment (ruling authority)

• établissement

Unadapted borrowing from English establishment.

• IPA^(key): /ɛs.taˈbliʂ.mɛnt/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iʂmɛnt
• Syllabification: es‧ta‧blish‧ment

establishment m inan

1. (derogatory, politics) establishment (the ruling class or authority group)

• establishment in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• establishment in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Unadapted borrowing from English establishment.

establishment m

1. establishment (ruling authority)

• “establishment”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “establishment”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Unadapted borrowing from English establishment. Doublet of establecimiento.

• IPA^(key): /esˈtabliʃment/ [esˈt̪a.β̞liʃ.mẽn̪t̪], /eˈstabliʒment/ [eˈst̪a.β̞li.ʒmẽn̪t̪]
• Rhymes: -abliʃment, -abliʒment
• Syllabification: es‧ta‧blish‧ment

establishment m

1. establishment (ruling authority)

   Synonym: casta

• According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

• “establishment”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025