Elite

French élite — choice, selected. From Old French eslite — chosen. From Latin eligere — to choose, select. Originally a neutral term for the chosen or selected — without the resentment the word now carries.

Became a pejorative in populist politics of the 20th and 21st centuries. 'Elite' now implies unearned privilege and disconnection from ordinary life — deployed against academics, media figures, and politicians regardless of actual wealth or power.