predominant
Americanadjective
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having ascendancy, power, authority, or influence over others; preeminent.
-
preponderant; prominent.
a predominant trait; the predominant color of a painting.
adjective
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having superiority in power, influence, etc, over others
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prevailing; prominent
Synonym Usage
See dominant.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of predominant
1570–80; < Medieval Latin praedominant- (stem of praedomināns ), present participle of praedominārī to predominate. See pre-, dominant
Explanation
If you’re talking about the most popular or common thing, call it predominant. If the predominant feeling in a neighborhood is that pizza is the best food, the result might be pizzerias being the predominant type of restaurant there. The adjective predominant describes a person or thing with great power or influence, or something that is prevalent. It comes from the Latin prefix prae-, “before,” and dominari, “to rule.” For example, because so many people like hip-hop, it might be the predominant music heard at a school dance. And that neighborhood with all the pizzerias? Teenagers are the predominant customers, and pepperoni is the predominant topping.
Vocabulary lists containing predominant
30 GRE Words Beginning with "P"
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"'Blaxicans' and Other Reinvented Americans," Vocabulary from the argument
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 3
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Predominant dress colors are black, "poison" green, purple.
From Time Magazine Archive
Predominant types: the whorls, jackstraws and disembodied eyelashes of Russian Vasily Kandinsky; the massive, machinelike color patterns of French Fernand L�ger; the planetary balls and bubbles, interlocking triangles and color spots of German Rudolf Bauer.
From Time Magazine Archive
Predominant over all was the stately figure of Hassan of Aleppo, that benignant, remorseless being, that terrible guardian of the holy relic who directed the murderous operations.
From The Quest of the Sacred Slipper by Rohmer, Sax
But if the Syrrup be made Green, that argues the Predominant Salt to be of a Nature repugnant to that of the Tribe of Acids.
From Experiments and Considerations Touching Colours (1664) by Boyle, Robert
Predominant vanity is, I am afraid, too much concerned here.
From History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Fielding, Henry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
