prevalence

Rarely prev·a·lent·ness

[prev-uh-luhns]

noun

1. the condition of being prevalent, or widespread.

   The study examines the prevalence of profanity in video games.

2. the degree to which something is prevalent or widespread, especially a disease, disorder, or pathogen.

   The prevalence of diabetes mellitus is rising worldwide.

Other Word Forms

• nonprevalence noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of prevalence¹

First recorded in 1600–10; from French prévalence, from Latin praevalēntia, from praevalent-, stem of praevalēns (present participle of praevalēre “to be more able”) + -ia -y ³ ( def. ); prevail ( def. )

Example Sentences

An indication of the limitations this introduces is the prevalence of online of videos showing robots performing one specific task: folding clothes.

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Underlying the differences of opinion are competing perceptions of the prevalence and influence of racism in the current day.

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Researchers at Stanford, led by Pope and colleague Victor Lee, have concluded that the prevalence of cheating does not appear to be greater than before AI.

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In 2007 he first publicly suggested that he believed that there was a link between vaccines and the increasing prevalence.

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The prevalence of tee-time brokering was reported by The Times last year, in which scores of local golfers shared frustrations over their inability to secure a tee time on public courses in L.A.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• pervasiveness 
• popularity 

When To Use

What does prevalence mean?

Prevalence is the state or condition of being widespread or in general use or acceptance.Prevalence is the noun form of the adjective prevalent, meaning widespread, common, or extensive.In the context of medicine, prevalence refers to how widespread a disease is—specifically, the total number of cases in a population at a given time.Example: The prevalence of social media use among teens is often linked to the rise in mental health issues like anxiety.