predominant
Americanadjective
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having ascendancy, power, authority, or influence over others; preeminent.
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preponderant; prominent.
a predominant trait; the predominant color of a painting.
adjective
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having superiority in power, influence, etc, over others
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prevailing; prominent
Synonym Usage
See dominant.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of predominant
1570–80; < Medieval Latin praedominant- (stem of praedomināns ), present participle of praedominārī to predominate. See pre-, dominant
Explanation
If you’re talking about the most popular or common thing, call it predominant. If the predominant feeling in a neighborhood is that pizza is the best food, the result might be pizzerias being the predominant type of restaurant there. The adjective predominant describes a person or thing with great power or influence, or something that is prevalent. It comes from the Latin prefix prae-, “before,” and dominari, “to rule.” For example, because so many people like hip-hop, it might be the predominant music heard at a school dance. And that neighborhood with all the pizzerias? Teenagers are the predominant customers, and pepperoni is the predominant topping.
Vocabulary lists containing predominant
30 GRE Words Beginning with "P"
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"'Blaxicans' and Other Reinvented Americans," Vocabulary from the argument
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 3
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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.
The UK Payments Market report, released once a year, shows that debit cards - included those loaded onto phones - were the predominant way to pay last year.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
The predominant theme explaining copper’s popularity is its new end-uses in the build-out of data centers as well as for electrification and decarbonization.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
With tech stocks not as predominant in Europe, the region's main stock markets advanced.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
More generally, female dispersal and the tendency for males to remain in their natal group also constitute a predominant pattern among the great apes.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
They are always completely calm, that is predominant in them; and even if they are not really calm, they become so.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
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.
