Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

paper ceiling

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.13 in modern English

Syllables: pa-per -ceil-ing
IPA

19

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

4

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An informal (and often unacknowledged) barrier to promotion or advancement, in employment and elsewhere, for people who do not have a university or college degree.

Etymology

paper (a piece of paper being the diploma representing a university or college degree) + ceiling (suggesting a barrier to upward advancement); modeled on glass ceiling, the first of such figurative ceiling terms.

Phrases

ceiling paper sheepskin effect the more you know, the higher you go

Frequently Paired Words

ceiling paper credentialism sheepskin effect the more you know, the higher you go gray ceiling more at glass ceiling § Coordinate terms

Questions

What does paper ceiling mean?: An informal (and often unacknowledged) barrier to promotion or advancement, in employment and elsewhere, for people who do not have a university or college degree.
Where does paper ceiling come from?: paper (a piece of paper being the diploma representing a university or college degree) + ceiling (suggesting a barrier to upward advancement); modeled on glass ceiling, the first of such figurative ceiling terms.

How to pronounce paper ceiling

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