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

See Examples For:

lion's share

"This is a matter of survival for a community that represents about two-thirds of our state's citizens and the lion's share of its economy."

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

Subscriptions and streaming are a key focus for investors as they are part of the group’s recorded music business, which accounts for the lion’s share of revenue.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

Had you not fought back against the insurer’s original estimate, you would have been left holding the bag for the lion’s share of the costs.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026

Moretti also points out that the lion's share of the wealth from OpenAI and Anthropic's coming stock market flotations will go to investors rather than employees, and they are globally located.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

With the king’s knights and lords claiming the lion’s share of the horsemeat, little and less remained for the common men.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin