prevalent
Americanadjective
-
widespread; of wide extent or occurrence; in general use or acceptance.
- Synonyms:
- common, far-reaching
-
having the superiority or ascendancy.
-
Archaic. effectual or efficacious.
adjective
-
widespread or current
-
superior in force or power; predominant
Usage
What are other ways to say prevalent?
Something that is prevalent is widespread or in general use or acceptance. How is this adjective different from prevailing and current? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
- nonprevalent adjective
- nonprevalently adverb
- prevalence noun
- prevalently adverb
- prevalentness noun
- unprevalent adjective
- unprevalently adverb
Etymology
Origin of prevalent
First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin praevalent-, stem of praevalēns “having superior force,” present participle of praevalēre “to be more able, have superior force”; see prevail
Explanation
Something prevalent is common in a particular place at a particular time. Prevalent things are hard to avoid. When you see the word prevalent, think "It's everywhere!" Have you ever noticed how all of a sudden a new word, band, or hairstyle will become super-popular? You may never have seen those things before, and then suddenly they're prevalent. When something is common, it's prevalent. You could say drug use is prevalent among criminals. You could say good study habits are prevalent among good students. If a certain opinion is common, then that's a prevalent view in society.
Vocabulary lists containing prevalent
30 GRE Words Beginning with "P"
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"The Devil and Tom Walker" by Washington Irving
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100 SAT words Beginning with "P"
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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.
"I only heard about the manosphere a few months ago – and now it's prevalent but I don't think it's about that," he says.
From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026
As a youth, Rodríguez Castro spent much of his time at his grandfather’s house enthralled with the macho atmosphere of guns and bodybuilding prevalent in Raúl Castro’s security detail.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026
“They’re becoming more prevalent and they’re slowly making their way across the Southeast. When we recently did work in Tennessee, every single rock alcove had one in it.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
The narrative quickly cuts to South London, where heartbreak's as prevalent as the pigeons.
From BBC • Mar. 26, 2026
These attitudes and behaviors were prevalent for many decades after slavery ended, including in education.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
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.
