Fortune 500

Fortune 500 proper noun: a list published annually by Fortune magazine of the 500 United States companies with the highest revenue.

Proper noun

the Fortune 500

A list published annually by Fortune magazine of the 500 United States companies with the highest revenue.
- I'm betting they're more listings from the Fortune 500.1987, Katherine V. Forrest, Murder at the Nightwood Bar, Alyson Publishing, →ISBN, page 65
- If he were a corporation instead of a criminal he'd be in the Fortune 500 by now.2004, Matt Ruff, Sewer, Gas and Electric: The Public Works Trilogy, Grove Press, →ISBN, page 42
Collectively, the members of that list.
- Abbott was in his late sixties and looked like a retired Fortune 500 executive in a three-piece suit, complete with manicured nails and a Rolex watch.1990, Sue Grafton, "G" is for Gumshoe, Henry Holt and Company, →ISBN, page 154
- In other words, a majority of the Fortune 500 are of the size of universities, from 500 up to about 40000 employees.1990, Michael Novak, Toward a Theology of the Corporation, American Enterprise Institute, →ISBN, page 20

Fortune 500 (plural Fortune 500s)

(broadly, informal) Any member of that list.
- If logic and demonstrations of success are not impetus enough, realize that activists are now looking beyond Fortune 500s.2000, Susan F. Shultz, The Board Book, →ISBN, page 13
- I shrink a little at the idea of Portia breaking another glass ceiling on her way to what can only be president or CEO of a Fortune 500.2005, Amy Scheibe, What Do You Do All Day?, St. Martin's Press, →ISBN, page 53

Myra Rutledge, heiress to a Fortune 500 candy company, looked around her state-of-the-art kitchen, at the pots bubbling on the stove, at the table set for two.2004, Fern Michaels, Payback, →ISBN, Prologue:
Few sportswear or sports equipment companies could be found pitching their products on television; and even fewer could be found among the Fortune 500.1999, Steve Fiffer, Three Quarters, Two Dimes and a Nickel: A Memoir of Becoming Whole, The Free Press, →ISBN, page 170:
Bennett didn't appear on CNBC, or kibitz with Maria Bartiromo, or speak at Fortune 500 conferences, or get himself profiled in the Wall Street Journal.2003, Joel C. Rosenberg, The Last Jihad, Tor/Forge, →ISBN, page 23:

plural	Fortune 500s

What does Fortune 500 mean?: Fortune 500 means a list published annually by Fortune magazine of the 500 United States companies with the highest revenue.
How do you use Fortune 500 in a sentence?: Myra Rutledge, heiress to a Fortune 500 candy company, looked around her state-of-the-art kitchen, at the pots bubbling on the stove, at the table set for two.
What part of speech is Fortune 500?: Fortune 500 can be a proper noun or a noun.

Adapted from Wiktionary: Fortune 500 (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

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