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

While the company remains sanguine about AI, Infineon is still grappling with sluggish demand for chips from carmakers, a key market since its automotive business accounts for the lion’s share of sales.

From The Wall Street Journal

The city’s more glamorous cousin, San Francisco, ended up with the lion’s share of official Super Bowl week activities.

From The Wall Street Journal

Gelifen was given the lion’s share—“the griffin’s share,” according to Mal.

From Literature

They put the lion’s share of their funds into U.S.-based ETFs that were invested in U.S.

From Barron's

The lion’s share are in China, but the company also has 4,700 locations across Australia, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.

From Los Angeles Times