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Synonyms

public-opinion poll

American  
[puhb-lik-uh-pin-yuhn] / ˈpʌb lɪk əˈpɪn yən /

noun

  1. a poll taken by sampling a cross section of the public in an effort to predict election results or to estimate public attitudes on issues.

Etymology

Origin of public-opinion poll

First recorded in 1935–40

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.

Their parents have routinely complained to the superintendent, who recently conducted a public-opinion poll to gauge interest in a switch.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

A public-opinion poll released last week found that more than half of Hong Kongers surveyed strongly supported the U.S. bill and fewer than a quarter strongly opposed it.

From Washington Post • Nov. 21, 2019

Monti’s popularity fell four percentage points to 58 percent after presenting the measures, according to a public-opinion poll published yesterday by IPR marketing.

From BusinessWeek • Dec. 14, 2011

Hughes, 43, ran ahead of Miller 3 to 1 in a public-opinion poll this fall.

From Time Magazine Archive

The pulse of democracy; the public-opinion poll & how it works.

From U.S. Copyright Renewals, 1967 July - December by Library of Congress. Copyright Office

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.