lion's share

American  

noun

1. the largest part or share, especially a disproportionate portion.

   The eldest son received the lion's share of the estate.

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lion's share Cultural  

1. A disproportionately large segment of the whole: “Though we always divided our winnings, somehow Barton always seemed to end up with the lion's share.”

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lion's share Idioms  

1. The greater part or most of something, as in Whenever they won a doubles match, Ethel claimed the lion's share of the credit, or As usual, Uncle Bob took the lion's share of the cake. This expression alludes to Aesop's fable about a lion, who got all of a kill because its fellow hunters, an ass, fox, and wolf, were afraid to claim their share. [Late 1700s]

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Etymology

Origin of lion's share

First recorded in 1780–90; probably after Aesop's fable in which the lion claimed all the spoils of a hunt

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lion's share

A Marsh survey of more than 1,000 U.S. employers found the average planned merit increase for 2027 is 3.2%, the lion’s share of a total raise budget of 3.5%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

This is particularly hard to swallow if there are children who have not treated a parent well or if a second spouse inherits the lion’s share of an estate, to the detriment of the children.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026

Despite previous tariffs increasing costs for manufacturers, car dealerships have absorbed the "lion's share" to date, according to Bernard Yaros, lead economist at Oxford Economics.

From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026

"This is a matter of survival for a community that represents about two-thirds of our state's citizens and the lion's share of its economy."

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

The lion’s share of students boycotted the election, but twenty-five stu-dents, about one-sixth of the student body, showed up and elected six representatives, one of whom was myself.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

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