prejudice
Americannoun
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prejudices
plural
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an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.
-
any preconceived opinion or feeling, either favorable or unfavorable.
- Synonyms:
- predisposition, predilection, partiality, preconception
-
unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, especially of a hostile nature, regarding an ethnic, racial, social, or religious group.
-
such attitudes considered collectively.
The war against prejudice is never-ending.
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damage or injury; detriment.
a law that operated to the prejudice of the majority.
verb (used with object)
-
prejudices,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prejudiced,
past participle, past
-
prejudicing
present participle
idioms
noun
-
an opinion formed beforehand, esp an unfavourable one based on inadequate facts
-
the act or condition of holding such opinions
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intolerance of or dislike for people of a specific race, religion, etc
-
disadvantage or injury resulting from prejudice
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to the detriment of
-
law without dismissing or detracting from an existing right or claim
verb
-
to cause to be prejudiced
-
to disadvantage or injure by prejudice
Usage
What does prejudice mean? Prejudice is a bias or a preconceived opinion, idea, or belief about something. When you act based on prejudice, you make up your mind about something and make generalizations about it before fully knowing about it. Though a prejudice can be positive, the word most often refers to unfair and strongly held negative judgments—especially hostile judgments about certain people. Prejudice can refer to a specific instance of such a belief, as in He clearly has a prejudice against people of color, or such beliefs collectively, as in We need to eliminate prejudice from society. Prejudice against people can be based on many parts of their identity, including race, ethnicity, religion, gender or gender identity, sexuality, and language. Such prejudices often create stereotypes about members of such groups. A common and widespread form of prejudice is racism, in which a person believes in the superiority of what they consider to be their own “race” over others. This most often takes the form of believing that those with other skin colors—especially darker skin colors—are inferior physically, intellectually, morally, and/or culturally, and mistreating and discriminating against them because of this. However, the word racism is often used to refer to more than just a prejudice or an active hatred but to a system of oppression based on such prejudice (often called systemic racism or institutional racism). Someone who has a prejudice against others can be described as prejudiced. Unfair treatment based on prejudice or causing prejudice can be described as prejudicial. Less commonly, the word prejudice can also be used as a verb meaning to cause to be prejudiced against someone or something, as in Bad press has prejudiced many voters against the candidate.
Synonym Usage
See bias.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
prejudicesimple
-
prejudicessimple
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have prejudicedperfect
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has prejudicedperfect
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am prejudicingprogressive
-
are prejudicingprogressive
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is prejudicingprogressive
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have been prejudicingperfect progressive
-
has been prejudicingperfect progressive
Past
-
prejudicedsimple
-
had prejudicedperfect
-
was prejudicingprogressive
-
were prejudicingprogressive
-
had been prejudicingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of prejudice
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin praejūdicium “prejudgment,” originally “preliminary or previous judicial inquiry,” equivalent to prae- pre- + jūdicium “legal proceedings, judging” ( jūdic-, stem of jūdex judge + -ium -ium )
Explanation
If you have a negative attitude towards someone based on race or ethnicity rather than personal experience, you might be accused of prejudice. Prejudice is remarkably similar to its Latin root in form and meaning; the Latin praejudicium means "judgment in advance." A racial prejudice is a negative attitude towards a group of people based on race — not on direct knowledge or experience. If you prejudice someone, you cause them to have a negative attitude towards someone else. Lawyers are not allowed to bring certain types of evidence such as rumors into a trial because it might prejudice the jury.
Vocabulary lists containing prejudice
Power Prefix: pre-
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You Be the Judge: Jud, Jur, Jus
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List 6
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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:
The case was dismissed without prejudice, meaning it could be refiled, and was not the result of a settlement, Bloomberg Law reported.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
Sly and the Family Stone’s message of overcoming prejudice and treating everyone with dignity, including ourselves, matches their steadfast dedication to making all their fans feel loved, especially children.
From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026
Plus, next month a judge has scheduled a hearing to decide whether Hearn’s dismissed charges should be held with prejudice, so the DOJ can’t charge him again for the same alleged conduct.
From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2026
Misogyny is defined as a contempt for, hatred of or prejudice against women.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
Let us remember what is so easy to forget in the mad intensity of wartime: that prejudice and hatred are never right and never to be accepted by a just society.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
All teams are defined, to some measure, on the preferences and prejudices of their managers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026
Aa a pop star with 10 years of hits under her belt, she says big artists need to shed their prejudices about Eurovision.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
People like John Lithgow, who plays Dumbledore, insist that Rowling’s Wizarding World is open to all, regardless of the creator’s prejudices.
From Salon ● May 14, 2026
It is human nature to project our phobias, prejudices and obsessions onto what is simply a biological contest between our immune system and the amoral pathogens trying to replicate themselves within us.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
It was in the Eastern Mediterranean that African, Asian, and European civilizations, including the great cultures of Egypt and Mesopotamia, met and cross-fertilized in a vigorous and heady confrontation of prejudices, languages, ideas and gods.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
On Tuesday, Tate's lawyers applied for a stay of 12 months on the civil case, arguing they were awaiting materials from the police and that any potential future criminal proceedings could be prejudiced.
From BBC ● May 6, 2026
Helder Barbalho, the governor of the state of Para, where Belem is located, slammed "the prejudiced" comments on the X social network.
From Barron's ● Nov. 18, 2025
Alex’s team filed the long-anticipated appeal of his convictions, arguing there were errors during his trial that prejudiced the jury in his case.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2025
“We’re all prejudiced against one thing or another,” Deen continues.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2025
No-nonsense nuns ruled classrooms with an iron hand, passing on to the youngest girls and boys the discipline and knowledge they would need to get ahead in a prejudiced world.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
The effective double trial led each executive to produce more damaging claims about the other, thus prejudicing the jury against the defendants, the lawyers said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
The Agency has previously declined to give the exact locations of the biggest sites to avoid prejudicing ongoing investigations.
From BBC ● Jan. 22, 2026
“Plaintiffs’ concealment of their identities is prejudicing the Robinsons’ defense,” the motion alleges.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2025
The inquiry has already ruled that evidence about the company will be heard in private later this month to avoid prejudicing an ongoing police investigation.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2025
And it must be remembered that the reports showing these facts were made by the railroad companies and were certainly not made with any intention of prejudicing the cause of the railroad manager.
From The Railroad Question A historical and practical treatise on railroads, and remedies for their abuses by William Larrabee
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.
