consensus
Americannoun
-
consensuses
plural
-
majority of opinion.
The consensus of the group was that they should meet twice a month.
-
general agreement or concord; harmony.
noun
Usage
Many say that the phrase consensus of opinion is redundant and hence should be avoided: The committee's statement represented a consensus of opinion. The expression is redundant, however, only if consensus is taken in the sense “majority of opinion” rather than in its equally valid and earlier sense “general agreement or concord.” Criticism of consensus of opinion has been so persistent and widespread that the phrase, even though in common use, occurs only infrequently in edited formal writing. The phrase general consensus is objected to for similar reasons. Consensus is now widely used attributively, especially in the phrase consensus politics.
Since consensus refers to a collective opinion, the words of opinion in the phrase consensus of opinion are redundant and should therefore be avoided
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of consensus
First recorded in 1850–55; from Latin, from consentīre “to be in agreement, share a feeling,” from con- con- + sentīre “to feel” ( cf. sense)
Explanation
When there's a consensus, everyone agrees on something. If you're going to a movie with friends, you need to reach a consensus about which movie everyone wants to see. Ever notice how people disagree about just about everything, from who's the best baseball player to how high taxes should be? Whenever there's disagreement, there's no consensus: consensus means everyone is on the same page. When you're talking about all the people in the world, it's hard to find a consensus on anything. There are just too many opinions. However, in a smaller group, reaching a consensus is possible.
Vocabulary lists containing consensus
Power Prefix: con-
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100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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The Things They Carried
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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.
See Examples For:
Federal officials set deadlines for the states to reach a consensus, but state negotiators missed those deadlines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The 10-year plan gives the states a “stable and flexible foundation” to address the water shortage while continuing to try to develop a consensus, Travnicek said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
That was in line with the consensus forecast in a poll of economists conducted by data provider Quick.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
The 12-month forward consensus S&P 500 EPS estimate is nearly 90% above the trailing 10-year average reported EPS.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
The consensus of opinion was pretty much, “That’s that!”
From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The ministry said both sides reached several consensuses on resolving non-tariff barriers and market-access issues for certain agricultural products.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
China has emphasised what it calls "a series of new consensuses" but it has not explained what those agreements are.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
“The key is to build those consensuses and add strength to the proposals on how he is going to achieve them,” she added.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 28, 2021
Throughout Ishmael Reed’s decadeslong career as a writer, he’s relentlessly taken on the majority-white establishments in literature, journalism, academia, and music, challenging the prevailing consensuses.
From Slate ● Dec. 22, 2020
Our scientific consensuses for response actions were based on the fundamental principle that no actions should be undertaken that would likely do more harm than good.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 9, 2018
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.
