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

Example Sentences

The conditions were near farcical, the ball frequently squirming through fingers and set-pieces a mess, with Scotland making the lion's share of blunders.

From BBC

Corning is the biggest fiber-optics maker by a number of measures and has the lion’s share of the North American market.

From The Wall Street Journal

Big moves in stocks and cryptocurrencies have commanded the lion’s share of investors’ attention this week.

From MarketWatch

"The lion's share of YouTube's content is user-generated versus 'Hollywood'-generated," he said.

From BBC

Bloom CEO KR Sridhar made it clear on the company’s earnings call late Thursday that Bloom considers its products—fuel cells that turn natural gas into electricity through a chemical reaction—to be better options than the natural-gas turbines that power the lion’s share of America’s electricity today.

From Barron's